Renée Rapp Wore Leather & Latex for The Sex Lives of College Girls Premiere
The actress Renée Rapp may play a preppy teenager named Leighton on the new HBO Max series The Sex Lives of College Girls, but her look at the premiere in Los Angeles on November 10 was anything but schoolgirl. Rapp, who got her start on Broadway as Regina George in the Mean Girls musical, made her silver screen red carpet debut last week wearing a Salvatore Ferragamo suit with Vex Latex corset and a harness by Zana Bayne. The getup was a far cry from Leighton’s style, which Rapp tells W “screams just about everything you need to know at face value.” In the series—which follows the awkward blunders, thrilling highlights, and life lessons that come along with any young adult’s first brush with romance—Rapp’s Leighton is a child of extreme wealth who keeps her privilege on the down low. In real life, the actress has been a hustler in her field since day one, having moved to New York City from her hometown in North Carolina to pursue an acting and singing career, then landing a spot on Broadway.
Sex Lives marks a turning point of sorts for Rapp—who rose to the occasion with a standout ensemble. While getting ready at her house with her team—“I think a total of eight people, including me,” Rapp says—the actress played “’90s throwbacks all day, which had us all in such good spirits,” and didn’t feel the usual stress associated with preparing for a premiere—until she realized she was a half-hour late. “I did have the whole day carefully mapped out, but I’m nothing if not consistent!,” she says. Catch a glimpse of the star’s getting ready process, here.
Rapp says she and her makeup artist, Dana Delaney, had a “pretty clear vision” for the beauty look she Delaney created for the actress’s red carpet appearance at The Sex Lives of College Girls premiere. “I loved the idea of an eye that looked like a purple glittery sunset,” Rapp says.
“Dana, being god, always hits it out of the park,” Rapp adds. “I usually have a couple inspiration photos that she and I go through to find the look.”
“The one thing I knew I wanted from this look was edge,” Rapp says. “On the show, Leighton is very preppy, wearing lots of two-piece sets and tweed. My mood board for the premiere actually had chaps on it a few times. My stylist, Jared Ellner, wanted the Ferragamo suit we chose to fall into that lane by adding a corset and harness, which I immediately co-signed.”
“The latex corset did make me overheat while dancing at the after-party, but it was worth it,” she adds.
“[My hairstylist] Bridget Brager and I knew we wanted the hair to balance the grunge of the suit and the playful nature of the makeup. We decided pulled back with texture was the way to go. She is also god.”
A close-up of the actress’s industrial jewelry. “I remember telling Jared the first time we met that I love chunky jewelry and a LOT of it. The next thing I know he finds these incredible rings from Bond Hardware that look like hardware store items, nuts and bolts. I immediately fell in love with them. Once again, god.”
Nail artist Vanessa Sanchez McCullough opted for a Pop Art geometric design on Rapp’s manicure.
The final look.
