Hollywood is prepared to make a powerful statement tonight with actresses and actors choosing to wear black to the Golden Globes — a sign of solidarity with…
But while the message is all about sisterhood and unity, that doesn’t mean there isn’t still competition to look the best.
“The conversations we’ve had in the past couple of weeks [are], ‘How do I make myself stand out in the sea of [black on] the red carpet?’ ” explained stylist Melis Kuris, who has dressed celebrities including Aaron Paul, Ian Somerhalder and Keke Palmer for events on the red carpet.
“While [the message is] about solidarity, there’s still a feeling of wanting to get on the best-dressed list and wanting to get attention,” said fashion publicist Daniel Huipe. “It’s going to be more about accessorizing, textures and things like that, so that while making a statement, you make a statement for yourself.”
It’s up to folks in the fashion industry to somehow make every nominee, presenter and attendee look great — and stand out with a unique style — amid a sea of funereal black.
After all, no brand wants to fall victim to a last-minute switch because someone else is wearing a similar outfit — a move that made headlines in 2013 when Anne Hathaway swapped her Valentino gown for a Prada number after hearing that Amanda Seyfried’s look resembled her intended pick.
“I can’t afford to risk a stylist and a celebrity being upset at us, so we definitely make sure nothing goes out that is similar,” Antonio Estebán, co-founder of Style PR, who has worked with stylists for Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez, told The Post. “For the most part, anything that I bring in from all of my designers stands out on its own.
“There is one dress that I had to put away this year because a celebrity wanted a custom dress made and we used a previous dress as a reference,” he added. “We pulled out [the reference dress] so that no one would wear a similar style.”
Typically, designers look forward to awards season as a showcase for their spring lines. A few moments on the red carpet leads to priceless free advertising in the form of the show itself (some 20 million viewers watched the Globes last year) plus all the follow-up news clips and photos that run online and in print.
But given the lack of black in most designers’ spring collections, there just aren’t enough new dresses to go around.
To meet demand, some designers have resorted to remaking their original collections in black. “A lot of designers initially made dresses in the color palette that people normally gravitate to, and now they’re remaking the same dresses in black,” one fashion source revealed. “Christian Siriano, for example, remade a handful of dresses in black for clients that had already chosen their dresses in color and then decided they want to be part of this movement.”
Some stylists are pulling black dresses from past seasons — which, previously, would have been seen as a big faux pas.
“Once we got word about the black, I made a call to all my designers and had them send me anything they had in black in their archives,” Estebán said.
“Some celebrities are OK with past seasons as long as it hasn’t been worn [for previous awards]. It depends on the caliber of the celebrity,” Estebán added.
Then there are the stars who have deals that guarantee they’ll get something special designed just for them. “You know off the bat that Jennifer Lawrence [is] going to be in Dior,” fashion publicist Angel Cervantes said. (Lawrence is the well-paid face of the label’s 2018 cruise collection.)
And while there seemingly isn’t pressure to participate in the blackout, it looks bad if one doesn’t.
“It’s a genuine movement,” the fashion source added. “But it’s also kind of like, if you’re on it, be on it, and if you’re not, you need to have a pretty strong answer as to why.”
Making things even tougher for the fashion crowd, this year’s Globes are the earliest in January they’ve been in a decade.
“We’re doing a custom gown for a nominee, and with her schedule and the holidays, we literally had five days to work on it,” one fashion-house insider said.
Still, there’s no guarantee that all that hard work will make it to the red carpet.
“When we do custom jobs, it’s never guaranteed,” the fashion-house insider added. “I’m sure [the actress has] other custom options being made as well — as she should. She’s a nominee.”
Meanwhile, the men are getting in on the action, too.
Stylist Ilaria Urbinati posted on Instagram that “YES, the men WILL be standing in solidarity with women on this wearing-all-black movement to protest against gender inequality at this year’s Golden Globes.” Among them will be her client Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
It may not seem like a big deal for guys to wear black, but a celebrity dresser for a top luxury label told The Post that it’s very chic for men to wear indigo and deep navy blue tuxes now — or a deep silvery gray — and several designers had to work over the holidays changing out these blue tuxedoes for black ones.
The monotonous color palette opens up opportunities for other, often less-appreciated areas to shine.
“It’s all about the accessories, the bags, the jewelry, the hair and makeup. That’s what’s going to have everybody stand apart from each other,” Estebán said, adding that black accessories and clear diamonds have been the pieces of choice this year.
One item you’ll see on most everyone: the Time’s Up pin. Reese Witherspoon and costume designer Ariane Phillips created it as part of the same-name sexual harassment prevention initiative launched this past Monday by Hollywood women such as Shonda Rhimes, Eva Longoria and Emma Stone.
But don’t get too used to the dark outlook — there seems to be a rainbow on the horizon.
“We’re already getting requests for the SAG Awards, Critics’ Choice, and Oscars,” Estebán revealed. “For the other shows they’re definitely going with color.”
Additional reporting by Merle Ginsberg
