Is the Red Carpet Now Its Own Form of Entertainment?

“Red carpet has become its own entertainment force in itself,” Zac Posen said to Katie Holmes during their shoot for The Hollywood Reporter’s Top 25 Red Carpet Designers issue. “I call it ‘fashiontainment.’” The 34-year-old, who appears on one of four covers with the Dawson’s Creek star, explains that his goal when dressing clients is to empower women to use fashion to get whatever they want creatively in their career.  

Michael Kors feels similarly. “The dress should make the woman feel like her best self,” the cover star along with longtime muse Blake Lively said of his rule for the red carpet. “You want it to fit well, complement her style and show off her personality all while looking glamorous and chic. And of course, it should look great from every angle.” Lively, a longtime fan, feels he does just that. “There’s an effortless to the elegance, which is just fabulous, and it all seems attainable,” she said. “It’s very warm and inviting, like him, so you just feel like the women in his room are the best dressed people in the room and yet it’s not like you can never be this person.”

A common theme seems to be that confidence is key. “I feel like I stand out in a way that is unusual and unique, but I still feel incredibly good on that red carpet, and you need that because red carpets are scary places to be,“ Ruth Wilson noted of her personal style. Peter Copping, who met The Affair star on a Vogue shoot in 2012 and appeared alongside her in this one, backed her up. “What I really admire about Ruth is that she doesn’t go the conventional route on the red carpet.”

Gwyneth Paltrow rounded out the the pack, taking the fourth cover slot with Valentino designers Pierpaolo Piccioli and Maria Grazia Chiuri. In an image taken just after the Italian brand’s couture show, Paltrow shines in a red billowing tent dress. Alexander Wang also posed with Nicole Kidman wearing custom Balenciaga, saying the Australian has true style for her ability to “transform clothes and the way you perceive them.” Prada, Mary Katrantzou, Dior, and more also made the list having contributed ensembles to go down in 2015′s best dressed history.

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