Hedi Slimane’s Best Celine Red Carpet Moments: From Kaia Gerber to Naomi Campbell
Like at his jobs before, Hedi Slimane wasn’t overly thirsty for celebrity placements during his tenure at Celine. That said, at every award show or film festival, one or two famous faces would step out in one of his designs. Because when a celebrity wanted to sparkle under the flashing camera lights on a red carpet, they knew exactly who to call. Slimane is a champion of simple sequins. While that may sound like an oxymoron, the designer’s use of the textile on classic and chic silhouettes has made him a go-to for A-listers looking to shine at important events. And it’s not just the women who requested the designer’s custom looks. Men, too, gravitated toward Slimane’s rocker aesthetic, tapping him for a great leather jacket or pair of skinny pants. Now that he’s officially left Celine behind for a new chapter, we’re looking back at some of the red carpet ensembles Slimane delivered over the years, from Dakota Johnson showing off his debut collection in 2018 to Lady Gaga’s recent Joker ensembles.
Dakota Johnson was the first person to wear Hedi Slimane’s Celine on the red carpet, nabbing a bright red, sequin-covered mini dress for the premiere of Suspiria in 2018. The piece was a good indication of what was to come from Slimane’s red carpet designs: simple silhouettes, boldly deep necklines, and a whole lot of sequins.
When Lady Gaga took home two Grammys in 2019 (including one for “Shallow”), she did so in a custom Celine gown, with a glam rock edge that fit both Gaga and Slimane’s aesthetics perfectly.
Brie Larson was an early adopter of Slimane’s Celine, first wearing one of his designs—a sleek halterneck dress covered in silver sequins—to the Oscars in 2019.
Not all of Slimane’s red carpet looks were gowns, however. In 2019, he dressed Allison Williams in a white mini dress with black sequin details for a screening of her film, The Perfection.
The lilac dress Larson wore to the Avengers: Endgame premiere in 2019 might seem simple, but the fabric work on the bodice should not be ignored.
Elle Fanning is known for her neutral, princess-like gowns, but in 2019, she tapped Slimane to dress her in an edgier, metallic look for the ESPYS.
While the silhouette of Reese Witherspoon’s custom knee-length Celine dress is inarguably simple, the black sequins and gold bust detail added the perfect amount of intrigue at the premiere of The Morning Show in 2019.
Slimane channeled a ’70s disco aesthetic when dressing Lupito Nyong’o for the National Board of Review Gala in 2020.
It’s unclear if Witherspoon knew she would match the backdrop of the Screen Actors Guild Awards red carpet when she tapped Slimane to design this dress for the 2020 award show.
For the second year in a row, Larson wore custom Celine to the Oscars, though she did up the ante slightly in 2020 in an embellished pale pink gown with a matching cape.
Of course, Slimane is no stranger to menswear, and he has dressed some very dapper-looking men in Celine Homme throughout the years. This more casual look Tom Holland wore to a 2021 Spiderman: No Way Home photocall is all about gorgeous separates, including that buttery leather jacket.
But Slimane doesn’t just put men in suits. Michelle Pfeiffer looked effortlessly cool in a cropped Celine suit at the premiere of The First Lady in 2022.
An ambassador of Slimane’s Celine, Kaia Gerber has worn some or the designer’s best creations on the red carpet, like this elegantly simple red halter dress, which she brought to Cannes in 2022 in order to support her boyfriend, Austin Butler, at the premiere of Elvis.
The 2022 Cannes Film Festival was a big year for Slimane, who also dressed Joe Alwyn in a tuxedo featuring an off-white jacket for the premiere of his film, Stars At Noon.
Natalie Portman wore a custom Celine mini dress with a geometric neckline to the world premiere of Thor: Love and Thunder in June 2022.
Not all of Slimane’s red carpet designs are sequin-covered. In 2022, he put Emma Roberts in a chic brown leather mini dress for a screening of Tell Me Lies.
It’s a shame Selena Gomez didn’t walk the red carpet at the 2022 Emmys, as more people deserved to see this white, sequined halter dress.
Before she embraced Barbiecore to an immense degree, Margot Robbie tapped Slimane to design a cut-out black dress with a dramatic cape for the 2022 premiere of Amsterdam.
The gunmetal hue of Paris Hilton’s 2023 Grammys dress made it the perfect choice for the award show.
Slimane doesn’t often work in patterns, so the abstract formation of the sequins on Riley Keough’s 2023 Vanity Fair Oscar party dress was a nice, subtle departure for the designer.
Naomi Campbell looked like the epitome of glamour in a silver sequined gown on the opening ceremony red carpet of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
Dua Lipa made an unexpected appearance at Cannes in 2023, wearing a custom, cutout dress by Slimane on the festival’s oceanside red carpet.
Another rare occurrence of Slimane working with a pattern: Gerber’s vintage-inspired, polka dot dress at the 2023 Academy Gala.
Of course, Slimane eventually had to bring his signature sequins to menswear, and he did so with a custom look for Timothée Chalamet at the 2024 Golden Globes.
Carey Mulligan wore one of Slimane’s most sculptural custom pieces to the Governors Awards in January 2024.
Dominic Sessa’s rocker aesthetic made him the perfect person to wear this leather Celine suit to the Critics Choice Awards.
Nyong’o showed off the dramatic low-back of her golden Celine gown at Cinemacon in 2024, where she received the award for Star of the Year.
Comedian Chloe Fineman tapped Slimane to dress her in a gorgeous red sequin dress for her Cannes debut at the Megalopolis premiere.
Of course, Fineman was hardly the only person to bring Slimane’s Celine to Cannes in 2024. His designs were also represented by Carla Bruni at the Emilia Perez premiere.
Jury president Greta Gerwig also wore a more structured Celine look to the festival’s closing ceremony.
Emma D’Arcy looked as cool as ever in a Celine Homme look featuring an embellished jacket and leather pants at the New York premiere of House of the Dragon season two.
Austin Butler’s three-piece pinstripe suit at the London premiere of The Bikeriders is the epitome of sophistication. And his steel-toe, cowboy-inspired boots added the perfect hint of rock and roll edge.
The slightly cropped, boxy fit of Kodi Smit-McPhee’s Venice Film Festival suit is just unique enough to make a statement.
While Katy Perry has had some fashion missteps over the past few weeks, the Celine dress she wore to the Toronto Film Festival in September 2024 was not one of them.
Camille Razat, whose Emily in Paris character wears a lot of Celine, fittingly wore the brand to the show’s season four part two premiere in September 2024.
Lady Gaga seemingly tapped Slimane to create a handful of outfits for her Joker: Folie à Deux press tour. First up, a strapless red gown with a matching bolero featuring some ’80s-style power shoulders.
For the Los Angeles premiere of the film, the shoulders were once again the vocal point of the look, this time draped in statement sleeves with a cape-like back.
