The Emmys Red Carpet Had Range

The gowns, the tailoring, the unexpected color. Our favorite fashion moments from television’s biggest night

The Emmys may belong to television, but this year’s blue carpet made a convincing opening argument for awards-season fashion. There was no single formula dominating the night. Instead, the strongest looks moved between color, texture, immaculate simplicity and outright spectacle. These are the ones that stayed with us.

Ayo Edebiri in Chanel

Ayo Edebiri gave us one of the night’s most interesting uses of color. From the front, the icy blue Chanel dress was almost deceptively sweet, with its sculpted bodice and enormous bow. Then came the back, and an explosion of orange-red completely changed the proposition. It was playful, strange and beautifully unexpected, exactly the kind of red carpet dressing that rewards a second look.

Abby Elliott in Erdem

There was something wonderfully undone about Abby Elliott’s blush Erdem gown. The corseted bodice brought structure while the crushed satin and gathered skirt looked almost as though the fabric had been wrapped and tied around her in the final moments before leaving. That little crimson ribbon at the hip prevented all that pale romance from becoming too polite.

Colman Domingo in Valentino

Colman Domingo continues to understand that menswear is allowed to participate in fashion. Terracotta, hot pink, magenta and ivory should be a difficult combination, yet the Valentino look made the clash its entire strength. The mandarin collar and frog closures gave the jacket character before the brilliantly colored sash even entered the conversation. Against a carpet full of conventional tailoring, Domingo once again looked like he actually wanted to get dressed.

Zendaya in Prada

Sometimes spectacle is enough. Zendaya’s custom Prada gown was almost entirely consumed by crystal, with a plunging neckline, transparent foundation and long train turning her into a moving field of light. The new pixie cut was particularly clever beside something so overtly glamorous. Anything more elaborate would have competed with the dress. Instead, the severity of the hair made all that sparkle feel sharper.

Grace Gummer in Dior

Black did not mean basic on Grace Gummer. Her Dior gown played with proportion and surface rather than color, allowing its voluminous, slightly cocooned silhouette and textural details to do the work. The line of pearls running down the side gave the darkness a precise decorative interruption, while the diamond choker added just enough polish. It was elegant, but interestingly so.

Timothy Simons

One of our favorite menswear color combinations of the evening came courtesy of Timothy Simons. A rich plum jacket, pale pink shirt and bow, and deep navy trousers made a strong case for abandoning the assumption that formal dressing requires every element to belong to the same tonal family. The sunglasses added just enough attitude to stop the bow from becoming overly sweet.

Selena Gomez in Louis Vuitton

If there is ever an appropriate night to dress like the trophy, surely it is the Emmys. Selena Gomez’s strapless Louis Vuitton gown turned gold into architecture, its metallic surface following the body before opening subtly toward the floor. With a dress this reflective, restraint elsewhere was essential. The absence of a necklace and carefully placed Tiffany & Co. jewellery allowed the gown to remain the event.

Youn Yuh-jung in Chanel

Youn Yuh-jung offered one of the quieter pleasures of the carpet in Chanel. The beauty was in texture: a simple sleeveless silhouette transformed by a densely worked surface, then extended over a fluid ivory skirt. The little structured handbag was the perfect finishing touch. Nothing strained for attention, yet the craftsmanship made the look impossible to dismiss.

Elle Fanning in Ralph Lauren Collection

Mint green can easily wander into bridesmaid territory. Elle Fanning made it look extraordinarily sophisticated. Her custom Ralph Lauren Collection gown was deliberately simple through the body, allowing its shimmering surface, fluid line and extraordinary trailing fringe to provide the drama. Matching platforms rather than predictable metallic shoes made the color commitment even better.

Chase Infiniti in Louis Vuitton

Chase Infiniti continued an increasingly formidable red carpet run in Louis Vuitton. The strapless mermaid silhouette was familiar awards-night territory, but the dense copper cabochon embroidery changed its character completely, creating a surface that appeared somewhere between jewellery, armour and fabric. The restrained styling was exactly right. When the dress has this much presence, it does not need assistance.

Julia Garner in Loewe

Julia Garner closed out our favorites with a lesson in knowing when to leave a dress alone. Her shimmering silver Loewe halter fell almost uninterrupted from its gathered neckline to the floor, with the metallic surface doing the work rather than complicated construction. Against her cropped platinum hair, the monochromatic effect was exceptionally clean. Minimal, yes. Forgettable, absolutely not.

What made the best of this year’s Emmys fashion work was precisely that there wasn’t one correct way to dress for the carpet. Ayo Edebiri’s enormous bows could coexist with Julia Garner’s simplicity; Colman Domingo could challenge the tuxedo while Louisa Jacobson borrowed from it; Zendaya could arrive covered in crystals while Youn Yuh-jung relied almost entirely on texture. Awards-season glamour is much more interesting when everyone stops trying to agree on what it should look like.