Kate Hudson’s Shaved Head Makes Its Red Carpet Debut in New York

Kate Hudson might be one of Hollywood’s most recognizable blondes—at least, that was the case until this summer, specifically late July, when the actress shaved off all of her hair. Since then, sightings of Hudson’s buzz cut have been sporadic but, this weekend, the Oscar nominated actress and budding athleisure mogul gave the world an up close look at her newly brunette hairdo when she hit the red carpet for the 21st annual Urbanworld Film Festival in New York City. Hudson paired her brunette buzz cut with a slinky Stella McCartney gown, diamond earrings, and matching silver eye shadow, all of which added to her natural glow.

Hudson was at the film festival to take in the premiere of Marshall, which traces Thurgood Marshall’s journey to the United States Supreme Court, where he made history as the first African-American justice — a timely film given the current political climate.

Hudson isn’t the first celebrity to opt for a dramatic overhaul courtesy of a buzz cut. This year alone, everyone from Katy Perry and Cara Delevigne to Kristen Stewart and Zoë Kravitz have chopped off their long locks into similar hairstyles. In fact, the buzz cut has emerged as one of the biggest celebrity beauty trends of the year. Hudson, however it seems, underwent a buzz cut for work.

Sia apparently ushered in the change as Hudson reportedly got a buzzcut for the artist’s next project, a film called Sister, which her stepfather Kurt Russell revealed in an interview with Harry Connick Jr.. “I don’t know if, cat out of the bag, if the deal’s not made or anything, but I think that she’s gonna do this musical that Sia is going to direct,” Russell said. “That sounds fantastic, so I hope that happens.”

It seems like it is happening as Hudson has been teasing behind-the-scenes pictures on her Instagram. In a post from July 26, Hudson shared a picture of herself sitting in a chair with her then-new buzzcut, along with the caption “Freedom ?? Compliments of @siathisisacting ❤️ #OurBeautifulDirector.”

Shortly before that, Hudson shared another photo from working on her upcoming project, this time featuring Sia’s protégé Maddie Ziegler, who starred in the songwriter’s videos for “Chandelier” and “Elastic Heart.” Few details are known about the mysterious project but hopefully it won’t be long until it’s officially announced.