The Best Dressed Celebrities of 2021: 21 Looks to Remember


Every now and then, a particular combination of person, place and garment produces absolute magic. The kind of image—J.Lo in the green Versace, Halle in the embroidered Elie Saab—that remains seared into our brains for years to come. This past year was chock full of such images, looks that arrested and awed and prompted us to send screen-grabs to our friends to discuss. Here, for your viewing pleasure, a review of 2021’s most salient style moments.

 

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Amanda Gorman at the Inauguration

We kick things off with Amanda Gorman, who at 22 made history as the youngest inaugural poet during President Biden’s swearing-in ceremony in January. The Harvard graduate captivated viewers the world over with her poem “The Hill We Climb,” which she penned following the U.S. Capitol riot. The text’s hopeful tone was matched by Gorman’s sunny Prada coat and oversized headband, a whimsical combination that captured the optimism of the occasion.

 

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The collective works of Zendaya

As a GQ cover of the actor read: “Guess who runs Hollywood now? (Zendaya).” In 2021 alone, she starred in blockbusters Dune and Spider Man: No Way Home, the promotional tours for which involved a procession of drool-worthy looks cooked up by her long-time stylist: the brilliant Law Roach. It’s no wonder she took home the Fashion Icon award at this year’s CFDAs.  

 

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Jonah Hill and Sarah Brady at the Don’t Look Up premiere

If love doesn’t look like Jonah Hill and Sarah Brady gazing into each other’s eyes whilst outfitted in matching Gucci suits, then we don’t want it! It’s easy to become jaded about red carpet style (I mean, how excited can one really get about yet another naked dress?), but it’s moments like this one that remind us of fashion’s ability to inspire and delight. Sometimes it’s haute couture requiring hundreds of hours of hand-beading, and sometimes it’s two people in love wearing the same Manolo Blahnik mules.

 

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Rihanna and A$AP Rocky at the Met Gala

Speaking of people in love, how freaking adorable are these two? Undoubtedly the two people everyone was most excited to see at this year’s Met Gala. They arrived fashionably late, closing the carpet in their bundled up looks—she wore Balenciaga, he donned ERL. Side-note: There’s something profoundly satisfying, nay exhilarating, about seeing RiRi bask in the happiness we all collectively wish for her, no?

 

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Zoë Kravitz at the Met Gala

We take back what we said earlier about “yet another naked dress.” Actually, no we don’t, but when Zoë Kravitz wears one, it’s not just another naked dress, it’s a defining event in fashion history. She’s a goddess and that’s just the way it is—we don’t make the rules. 

 

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Kim Kardashian at the Met Gala

Next up is Kim Kardashian in what is essentially the polar opposite of a naked dress. Shrouded in an all-black ensemble by Demna Gvasalia for Balenciaga, one of the most exposed people on the planet flipped the script. Was it a comment on how Kardashian is so famous, she can be recognized by her mere silhouette? Or perhaps a desire to indulge in faceless anonymity for one night only? No one knows what it means, but it’s provocative.

 

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Billie Eilish at the Met Gala

Another Met Gala moment. There are a few on this list because A) not a whole lot happened this year and B) “the fashion Oscars” couldn’t have been more worthy of that moniker this time around. Case in point: Billie Eilish sending shockwaves down the Metropolitan Museum steps with this Marilyn moment. A marked departure from the baggy garments she usually favours, the frothy Oscar de la Renta channelled old Hollywood glamour. But there was another reason the dress was so noteworthy: Eilish agreed to wear the label on the condition it stop selling fur, using her first Met Gala appearance (she was also this year’s co-chair) to effect lasting change in the industry. Well played!

 

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at the Met Gala

While we’re on the topic of Met statements, we of course couldn’t leave out what was arguably the night’s most talked about dress. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wore a custom white Brother Vellies gown with the words “Tax the rich” scrawled across the back in bold red letters—quite a cheeky thing to say at an event for which tickets cost a modest $38,000. As the dress’s designer, Aurora James (pictured left), told The Kit, “If you have a message to deliver to a certain group of people, you may as well go where they are to tell them.” Touché!

 

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Quannah Chasinghorse at the Met Gala

Completing the Met Gala portion of our program is the sensational Quannah Chasinghorse. The 19-year old-Indigenous model—who is Hän Gwich’in and Oglala Lakota—paid homage to her heritage by pairing her Peter Dundas gold lamé dress with piles of turquoise and silver jewellery that reflected her ties to the Navajo tribe. A particularly poignant sight considering the evening’s Americana theme. As Chasinghorse told Vogue, “It was refreshing to feel empowered in a space where I wouldn’t have been welcomed if it was a decade ago.”

 

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Anna Taylor-Joy at the Emmys

It was a breakout year for Anna Taylor-Joy. She was crowned best actress for her work in The Queen’s Gambit at the Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Time Magazine placed her on its 100 Next list of “emerging leaders who are shaping the future” and Dior made her the house’s new ambassador. Here she is representing the brand at the Emmys in a bespoke buttercup gown and marigold opera coat–divine!

 

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Sarah Jessica Parker in And Just Like That…

Oh, Carrie Bradshaw, how we missed you! Regardless of your thoughts on the much debated Sex and the City reboot, you have to admit there’s something truly elating about watching Parker reprise her role as the fashion-loving relationship columnist. And let’s talk about that fashion for a second. Paparazzi shots of Parker filming scenes for the show were picked apart in the media, with many feeling the show’s costume designers had failed to uphold Pat Field’s legacy (Field, who famously outfitted the four ladies in the original series and two subsequent movies, was busy working on Emily in Paris). Say what you will, but this look from the show’s opening scene—the two bags, the feather-adorned hat—is pure Carrie fabulousness.

 

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Cynthia Erivo at the Venice Film Festival

No one does joyful dressing better than Cynthia Erivo. This year, the actor/singer/songwriter (there is nothing she can’t do) brought some much needed levity to the carpet, offering a technicolour parade of jubilant looks: acid green Valentino, silver foil Schiaparelli, blooming de la Renta—the list goes on. But our favourite has to be this feathery Valentino Haute Couture creation from the Venice Film Festival—happiness in fashion form.

 

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Harry Styles at the Grammys

Let us direct our attention now to Harry Styles who rocked not one, not two, but three faux fur boas at this year’s Grammys. (They were Gucci, natch.) Our fave from the bunch has to be this pale pistachio version, looped around the neck of a shirtless Styles decked out in a full leather suit. He later flung it off with panache while performing Watermelon Sugar. A 2021 highlight to be sure.

 

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Gwyneth Paltrow at the Gucci Love Parade

When you’ve been acing the red carpet thing for decades, sometimes the best style reference is, well, yourself. Exhibit A: Gwyneth Paltrow recreating her memorable red Gucci suit moment. The actor first wore the velvet two-piece, designed by Tom Ford, to the 1996 MTV Video Music Awards. And in November of this year, she slipped on current creative director Alessandro Michele’s tribute to the look, cementing her status as a true fashion icon.

 

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Lady Gaga at the House of Gucci premiere

When the movie is about one of the biggest fashion houses in the world and the lead actor one of the most flamboyant dressers of our time, you know you’re in for some stellar premiere looks. As always, Gaga did not disappoint, giving photogs money shot after money shot (that dramatic deployment of the sleeves!) in purple pleated Gucci at the film’s London premiere.

 

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Angelina Jolie at the Eternals premiere

Angelina Jolie wowed at the L.A. Eternals premiere in a floaty Balmain creation and striking gold facial jewellery. Everything about it—the sandy hue, the corseted bodice, the edgy accessory—felt like a return to form for the actor. Good to have you back, Angie!

 

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Gemma Chan at the Eternals premiere

Jolie’s co-star Gemma Chan—the very embodiment of elegance—also brought it to the Eternals promo circuit, using her spotlight to champion the work of Asian creatives. Here she is at the Rome Film Festival, an absolute vision in Swarovski-crystal-embellished separates (that headpiece!) from rising South Korea-born designer, Sohee Park. 

 

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Lil Nas X at the iHeartRadio Awards

Men’s red carpet fashion tends to be pretty redundant, but not when Lil Nas X is on the guest list. The hip-hop star knows how to make the most of every appearance, giving the people something to talk about and never shying away from risk. He’s had a particularly good run of looks this year, but we had to highlight this holographic suit moment, complete with a coordinating cat-eye—inspired!

 

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Hailey and Justin Bieber meeting the French President

This was cute: The Biebers getting dressed up to meet the French President and First Lady, Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron. As our executive editor Rani Sheen remarked, “It was endearing, sort of like two kids playing grown-up!” The couple got flack for their ensembles, with many deeming them inappropriate for the occasion (he paired his suit with Nikes, she bore a section of her midriff in a keyhole LaQuan Smith). We happen to think they looked hella cool in an international spy, Mr. & Mrs. Smith kind of way.

 

 

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Meghan Markle at the Salute to Freedom Gala

The Duchess of Sussex took a page out of her late mother-in-law’s book and broke out her own version of a revenge dress. Amid the backlash of that Oprah interview, the much-publicized drama with her family and that of her husband, and a court case against The Daily Mail, Markle pulled out all the stops for what was her first red carpet appearance since leaving the Royal Family. Wearing a Carolina Herrera ball gown in the most fiery shade of crimson, she looked positively regal. Silenced no more!

 

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Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck in Venice

It was the night Bennifer 2.0. made its relationship red carpet official. Ben and Jen simply radiated bliss (you really can’t beat that head-over-heels glow) at the Venice Film Festival, with Lopez dazzling in a plunging white number by Georges Hobeika. Now, this was before that interview where Ben said some, um, questionable things about his marriage with Jennifer Garner (a.k.a., the mother of his children and the saint who drove him to rehab, even stopping at Jack in the Box on the way so he could get a burger). So these sugary snaps with Lopez don’t make us feel as warm and fuzzy as they did in the moment, but nonetheless, you have to admit they looked pretty great.

 

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