The crowning achievement of a year’s worth of work, the Oscars continue to be the pinnacle of Hollywood’s awards circuit and the fashion is always a highlight.
A night honouring the best films, actors and industry experts, it’s one of the most-watched live ceremonies around the world, this year drawing an incredible 18 million viewers.
For those of you dedicated enough to stay up and watch things unfold in real time, I salute you. If, however, you’re like me and value your beauty sleep, let me catch you up on all the best red carpet moments and fashion trends spotted at this year’s ceremony.
Sheer love
The see-through trend has been popping up on red carpets for over two years now, and the 2025 Academy Awards proved that the trend isn’t going anywhere. At the Vanity Fair afterparty, Olivia Wilde wowed in a sheer dress from Chloé’s spring 2025 collection, reigniting my love of boho, while Julia Fox channelled Eve (of Adam and Eve) in a design by Dilara Findikoglu, which incorporated strands of hair into the see-through design.
Kendall Jenner—who rarely sets a foot wrong when it comes to fashion—opted for a slightly more wearable option, arriving in a black lace dress from Mugler’s archival. Sister Kylie was every bit the 20s movie star in a strapless corset dress from Ashi Studio’s spring 2025 couture collection, while Zoë Kravitz (perhaps inspired by CMAT’s derrière), chose a Saint Laurent number with a sheer panel at the back paying homage to the so-called “ass cleavage”, ubiquitious in the early 00s.
Silver metallic
Good news for magpies: shiny is in. A few seasons ago, we saw this manifest in metallic trousers. The red carpet equivalent is shimmery, silver gowns. Halle Berry, a presenter at this year’s ceremony, pulled out all the stops in a mirrored Christian Siriano gown with 7,000—yes, you read that correctly—beads. Other celebrities to embrace silver this year include Demi Moore, who shined in a sequined gown by Armani Privé, Emma Stone in Louis Vuitton, and Mindy Kaling in Oscar de la Renta. The Brutalist star Felicity Jones’ chrome Armani dress was a personal favourite.
Old Hollywood
This year’s fashion definitely harked back to the glory days of old Hollywood. Body-hugging dresses with sleek hair, simple jewellery and tasteful make-up reigned supreme. Scarlett Johansson tied all three together in her look, a beautiful velvet gown by Thierry Mugler with matching gloves. Elle Fanning wore Sarah Burton’s Givenchy, which she paired with classic winged liner and a chic updo. Selena Gomez opted for Ralph Lauren while Julianne Hough was the cut of Grace Kelly in a flowing Christian Dior gown.
Monochromatic suiting
When it came to menswear, monochromatic suiting was a clear favourite, as shown by both Andrew Garfield in all brown and Timothée Chalamet in butter yellow. He may not have taken home the award for Best Actor, but he definitely set tongues wagging with his sartorial prowess!
Irish design was also well represented on the night, courtesy of Joe Alwyn, who wore a custom look from Magherafelt native Jonathan Anderson’s label, JW Anderson.
Pretty pastels
Pastels were another big winner on the night, particularly blush pink, which we saw repeated in many iterations. Best Actress winner, Mikey Madison, led the charge in a classic Dior Haute Couture ballgown with a contrasting bustier, train and statement bow. Monica Barbaro followed suit, also in Dior. Nominated for the first Oscar of her career, she narrowly missed out to Zoe Saldaña, who cinched the win for her role in Emilia Pérez.
Ariana Grande also stunned in the colour of the moment, stealing the show in an incredible Schiaparelli gown designed by Daniel Roseberry. She later changed into a sequin red dress complete with Dorothy shoe on the back for a Wicked medley performance alongside co-star and close friend Cynthia Erivo. “I love Daniel and Schiaparelli more than life itself, so to have been able to share this moment with him and the incredible team for both of my looks was such a surreal honor,” Grande told Vogue of her outfit choices.
At the IFTA Awards in Dublin last month, Saltburn star Alison Oliver proved she was ahead of the trend cycle in an asymmetric cap sleeve dress by Loewe. Expect to see lots more soft-hued colour palettes this SS, especially come summer wedding season.
Bold colours
On the other end of the spectrum, bold colours. Perhaps the easiest way to ensure all eyes are on you, this year we saw everyone from Colman Domingo to Raye sporting statement colours. Domingo, who is always on my best dressed list, wore a belted Valentino blazer with a co-ordinating shirt underneath while Raye went with a gorgeous Vivienne Westwood number. Michelle Yeoh opted for a strapless blue silk dress by Balenciaga, while Zoe Saldaña donned a tiered Saint Laurent bubble dress in deep burgundy.
Plenty of black tie inspiration there, I think you’ll agree. Did you have a favourite look?
Photography by The Academy Awards.
