Honestly? I was hoping the fashion we would see at the Emmys would be better than it was. Maybe it’s that we’re coming off two major film festivals in Venice and TIFF and also it’s New York Fashion Week and the celebrities who have been all over the runways and at the premieres and the parties have already been turning it up all month so our expectations are already dialed up to high. 

 

In comparison, for the most part, the Emmys carpet seemed kinda… muted? Not that there weren’t some standouts, but overall, considering the entire parade, it lacked the kind of big time Hollywood glamour that made me come off my couch. 

Going back to what I was just saying about how the festivals and NYFW and all the recent premieres set the standard, we saw Margot Robbie and Dakota Johnson do it with their naked dresses last week and both were pretty f-cking spectacular but in my mind it had the effect of potentially lessening the impact of any naked dresses at the Emmys. Not a problem, though, for Jenna Ortega. 

@varietymagazine

#JennaOrtega stuns on the #Emmys red carpet

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This is Givenchy, and also an audio person’s nightmare, LOL. (You could actually hear the stones clacking together while she was presenting with Catherine Zeta-Jones.) It is very naked, it is very beautiful, and most importantly it very much suits her. My only small note is that the piece was sent down the runway with baggy trousers, which I prefer to the skirt that Jenna and her stylist, Enrique Melendez, ultimately chose. But I also get not wanting to wear it exactly how it looked on the runway. 

 

Some people are calling this an homage to Isabella Rosellini in Death Becomes Her…

…and that too tracks with Jenna’s overall style vibe and where she takes her inspiration, given the role that made her famous, and the skirt does indeed work better if that really was what they were thinking.

As for her eyebrows, I’m way more into the eyebrows or the lack of them than Duana and Sarah. It suits her so well that I barely notice anymore that she doesn’t have any. 

 

Next, Kristen Bell. Talking about Kristen Bell’s red carpet fashion in these parts will get you blocked, but we’re doing it anyway because for me this is her best look in years. I mentioned Margot Robbie earlier in this post and her naked dress the other day at the premiere of A Big Bold Beautiful Journey in London – it was Armani Privé and we saw several Armani Privé dresses at the Emmys last night, standouts on a night when it was a lot of mediocre. Kristen’s is one of them. This fits her beautifully, the beading criss-cross top transitioning to the sheer skirt is exquisite. 

 

Kristen’s co-star from Nobody Wants This, Justine Lupe, also did the naked and champagne for her first Emmys. She looks good, it’s just that at this point these dresses have become so ordinary the effect isn’t what it used to be. But I do appreciate her talking about the discussions that happen around how to wear them. Here she is talking about taping her ass: 

@entertainmenttonight

Justine Lupe is SENDING us with this secret about her #Emmys outfit. #justinelupe #nobodywantsthis

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Pretty sure Mary Steenburgen wasn’t worried about ass tape but she too showed up in champagne sparkles alongside Ted Danson. Together they received the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for their philanthropic efforts. They’re adorable, no notes!

@televisionacad

Ted Danson & Mary Steenburgen received The Bob Hope Humanitarian award tonight! 🫶🏻 #Emmys #TelevisionAcademy #77thEmmys

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And who else does it like Angela Bassett? A queen in all her metals, gold and silver, it’s also giving Spider Woman because the pattern looks like a web. We’ve seen dresses like this before, but what sets this one apart is the person wearing it. Ms Bassett is feeling herself! And, really, that’s all that matters. 

 

Finally, this is a dress that I initially thought was champagne and it’s actually butter yellow which makes it even better? I’m not saying this is anywhere near the most exciting look of the night, it was just unexpected from Scarlett Johansson, I would never have predicted a butter Prada but it works so well against her tan, it’s soft and beachy and chill. And also, she was actually a plus-one for the night with Colin Jost, trying to be a supporting character when she’s always the lead, and that would explain the dress choice. Unfortunately it doesn’t photograph as well as it should because the lighting on that carpet was heinous – I don’t understand why the television academy insists on always being the poor cousin to the Oscars. We’re two decades into prestige TV now, could TV please grow a bigger ego?! 

 

Jenna Ortega, Kristen Bell, Mary Steenburgen, Ted Danson, Angela Bassett, Scarlett Johansson, and Colin Jost attended the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards.
Photo credits: ALLISON DINNER/ EPA/ John Salangsang/ David Fisher/ Shutterstock

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