The rising stars of Time100 Next

Another of those year-end fetes is the Time100 Next Gala, which celebrates rising stars in culture, media, leadership, and activism. This year’s list includes Jonathan Bailey, Tramell Tillman, Teyana Taylor, Monica Barbaro—good of you to show AFTER her Oscar nomination, some of us were here BEFORE—Damson Idris, Manny Jacinto, Tate McRae, Meghann Fahy—Sirens was NOT that good!—Justified star Kaitlyn Dever, Megan Stalter, and Sinners breakout Miles Caton. These are just some relevant highlights, you can see the full list here.

Among the men, Manny Jacinto is the best dressed by default. Don’t get me wrong, they all look very handsome, but Jonathan Bailey is clearly resting before the Wicked press tour kicks off, and Tramell Tillman wasn’t there, so Manny gets it by virtue of his cheekbones and claret suit.

As for the ladies’ side, Monica Barbaro always looks perfectly nice, but she has never worn anything that makes me think she’s trying to be a style star, and her black dress here is no different. Meanwhile, Canadian pop tartlet Tate McRae—who I keep confusing with Addison Rae because I am old—wore a Valentino dress that looks like something Sydney Sweeney would wear to exactly the same effect.

And then there is the battle of abs happening between Meghann Fahy and Teyana Taylor. Look, I’m sure Meghann Fahy is very nice and boho chic works for a lot of people and her abs are very toned, but no one is beating Teyana on a red carpet.

Teyana is dressed like Selina Kyle distracting Bruce Wayne at a gala in Gotham City. She’s hot as f-ck and she knows it.

But the real best dressed is Nina Gualinga, an environmental and indigenous rights activist and defender from Ecuador. She showed up representing her heritage from the Kichwa Sarayaku indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Amazon.

Yes, she looks fabulous, but also, she’s at the forefront of advocating for climate justice, indigenous rights, and the protection of the Amazon. A rising star, indeed.