The Most Mesmerising Green Red Carpet Looks

green - angelina jolie, cynthia erivo — (Image credit: Getty Images)

Done right, shades of green don't have to scream "St. Patrick's Day." At red carpet events, jades, emeralds, and even lime green outfits contrast beautifully with the backdrop; the color is so eye-catching, in fact, that some of the most memorable red carpet gowns ever have been green (Jennifer Lopez's Versace, anyone?).

From a light charmeuse to the most brilliant emerald, these green gowns serve as forever inspiration.

Ashley Graham

Ashley Graham is gorgeous in green at the 2024 Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala, an event for uplifting and supporting Black-owned businesses. The emerald green feathered and sequined gown with strategically placed cutouts was, according to Graham's Instagram, by Hanifa.

Sabrina Carpenter

This gown might make you do a double take: that's the illusion of a belt at Sabrina Carpenter's waistline, with cutouts where the rest of the belt might have been. This is at the Loewe Menswear Spring/Summer 2025 show at Paris Fashion Week, and this dress is (predictably) from Loewe.

Anne Hathaway

At the Clooney Foundation for Justice's 2023 Albie Awards, Anne Hathaway is giving "joker-chic" in a silver and pistachio green patterned Versace dress. If you watched the designer's Spring 2024, you might remember that Claudia Schiffer originally modeled the gown on the runway.

Emma Corrin

Imagine having such a gorgeous lime green suit in your wardrobe. Emma Corrin attends the 2024 Miu Miu Women's Tales photocall here, and their neon suit is from the brand's Fall/Winter 2024 collection. This "brat green" look also drew comparisons to Twiggy.

Viola Davis

The Cannes Film Festival might be the perfect place to wear a bold, vibrant green dress. Viola Davis, whose sartorial record at the event is unimpeachable, attends The Masterminds premiere in a custom Gucci gown with chiffon tendrils at the shoulder.

Victoria Beckham

This is technically not a red carpet, but since it's a television appearance (and a divine green dress), I say it counts. Visiting The Today Show in what might be the ideal transitional dress, Victoria Beckham shows off a pretty one-shoulder version from her own brand.

Maria Sharapova

The Met Gala is always the right place to go big, and 2024's theme ("Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion") is a nice way to channel a light green floral-inspired gown. Maria Sharapova is both extremely floral (and essentially channeling a tennis ball color!) in Prabal Gurung.

Lupita Nyong'o

Green doesn't have to be limited to dresses! This pastel power suit is divine on Lupita Nyong'o at the 2025 Met Gala (“Superfine: Tailoring Black Style"). The designer is Chanel, and the billowing cape adds a little softness to the sharp, expertly tailored pant suit.

Olivia Wilde

Attending the 2024 Academy Museum Gala at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Olivia Wilde is a vision in a sculptural fern green Erdem gown—with pockets, no less! Wilde even shouted out the design feature on her Instagram, so she's clearly a fan too.

Beyoncé

This green Versace gown has had a long and exciting life. Naturally, Beyoncé wore it to the 2003 MTV Movie Awards, Christina Aguilera wore it for the Versace Fall 2003 campaign, and (many years later) Iris Law, Jude Law's daughter, wore it to a 2022 London Fashion Week party.

Sarah Paulson

Now this is neon. Sarah Paulson ensures every single eye is on her at the Ocean's 8 premiere. She told British Vogue, "The second I saw the dress on the autumn/winter 2018 runway I emailed Verde Visconti [PR director] at Prada and told her I had to have it. I stalked her for a week or more!...Then, I pushed my luck and Prada made a gown version of the runway piece, it's one of my favorite dresses of all time."

Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Julia Louis-Dreyfus doesn't always wear this light green color, but I love this look and think it's perfect for her (this is in 1996 at the Primetime Emmy Awards). It's extremely '90s, including the crimped hair and updo, and the near-matching shawl is divine.

Priyanka Chopra

Attending the 2023 DKMS Gala, Priyanka Chopra Jonas literally shines in Valentino: the green sequins, cutouts, leg slit, and side train could all read as too "busy," but the dramatic shape of the dress and multidimensional color throughout makes her look like a feminized Statue of Liberty. In the best possible way.

Amy Adams

This is one of Amy Adams' more famous looks, from the 2008 Academy Awards. This is emerald green Proenza Schouler and a perfect example of how red hair perfectly complements a green outfit (it won't be the last time you see a redhead on this list!).

Emily Ratajkowski

Layers, layers, layers, tassels, tassels, tassels: Emily Ratajkowski attends the Battlefield premiere at the 2024 Venice Film Festival looking gorgeous in green. This is actually archival Tom Ford from Gucci’s 2004 Fall/Winter ready-to-wear collection.

Kate Middleton

Here, Kate Middleton attends the 2021 Royal Variety Performance in a royal rewear: a recycled Jenny Packham green sequin gown that she previously wore in 2019 during a trip to Pakistan. She complemented the forest green color with, naturally, a matching bag and shoes.

Cardi B

Leave it to Cardi B to make a lime green couture poncho look chic! Here, she's attending the Gaurav Gupta Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2023/2024 show at Paris Fashion Week; the column dress and matching shawl are, predictably, Gaurav Gupta, and so fitted that she had to be carried by her team to the hotel.

Jessica Chastain

An Oscar is, in fact, the best accessory. Attending the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party, Jessica Chastain is wearing a mermaid-inspired custom emerald green Gucci gown with silk lamé draping. The construction is so precise that you spot more details the more closely you look.

Angela Bassett

Angela Bassett has been giving us stellar red carpet looks for decades now. Here at the 1998 How Stella Got Her Groove Back premiere, she wears an olive silk slip dress. My favorite part is the orange lining at top and bottom, which offers gorgeous contrast.

Sharon Stone

Looking every inch the A-lister that she is, Sharon Stone walks the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for Crimes Of The Future. If you look closely at the Dolce & Gabbana print, it's actually velvet leopard, complete with Swarovski crystals sewn in.

Julianne Moore

Julianne Moore wears a lot of green—and for good reason, since it suits her red hair. Here at the 2023 Academy Museum Gala, she keeps it simple with a caped Valentino gown that had a daring keyhole design at the chest. It doesn't need to be ornate to be stunning.

Alicia Vikander

Attending the 2024 British Independent Film Awards, Alicia Vikander dazzles in green Louis Vuitton. She wore a multicolored version of the dress earlier that same year at a Tribeca Festival premiere, but this deeper color looks more refined—and was a near match to her husband Michael Fassbender's brown suit.

Pamela Anderson

Pamela Anderson's style renaissance has been a thing to behold. This emerald two-piece set is actually designed by New York bridal designer Danielle Frankel. Anderson added a long green chiffon scarf that trailed behind her like a train and gave the look even more panache.

Emma Stone

One of Emma Stone's more famous dresses, this look from the 2015 Academy Awards is one of the all-time greats (look at all that detail!). She paired the custom, beaded chartreuse Elie Saab with matching light green heels and soft pink makeup as a perfect contrast.

Kate Winslet

All eyes were on Kate Winslet at the 1998 Academy Awards—Winslet was nominated for the blockbuster Titanic, after all—and she delivered. This is Givenchy designed by then-Chief Designer Alexander McQueen, and the whole look is perfectly vintage-inspired.

Zendaya

Zendaya's tennis-inspired outfits when she was promoting Challengers were incredible. This, at the Los Angeles afterparty, has a literal tennis ball on it; created by Greek designer Celia Kritharioti, it's the perfect high fashion but not too serious choice.

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has really made green one of her signature colors (it corresponds to the snake insignia that she reclaimed as a symbol of empowerment). This serpentine gown is perfect for the context—the 2024 Golden Globe Awards—and is custom Gucci that reminded fans of her Reputation era.

Gabrielle Union

Now this is a statement. Gabrielle Union attends the The Fashion Awards 2021 here wearing a lime green Valentino dress with cutouts, a wide skirt, and a sheer cape. No surprise, but this made major fashion waves and is perfect for this type of event.

Nicole Kidman

If you're unfamiliar, Nicole Kidman's 1997 Academy Awards gown was shocking for its time. The chartreuse Dior, designed by John Galliano, broke with convention for the black-tie event and is sometimes referred to as the first couture gown on the Oscars red carpet.

Cynthia Erivo

Cynthia Erivo is really channeling Elphaba here for the Los Angeles Wicked premiere. Her promotional outfits were all great, but this fluffy stole matching her green vinyl Louis Vuitton gown is particularly noteworthy: channeling both her character and her sense of style.

Angelina Jolie

A pregnant Angelina Jolie attends the Kung Fu Panda Cannes premiere in 2008 in one of her most memorable red carpet gowns of all time (she would deliver two months later). This is a Max Azria empire-waist dress and a perfect choice for her first year attending the film festival.

Jennifer Lopez

By now, you probably know: this is the dress that broke the internet (or, more specifically, was the impetus behind the creation of Google Images search). Other starlets had worn the gown before her, but after Jennifer Lopez put on the green Versace chiffon gown, it's become inextricably linked to her.

Katherine’s a contributing syndications editor at Marie Claire who covers fashion, culture, and lifestyle. In her role, she writes stories that are syndicated by MSN and other outlets. She’s been a full-time freelancer for over a decade and has had roles with Cosmopolitan (where she covered lifestyle, culture, and fashion SEO content) and Bustle (where she was their movies and culture writer). She has bylines in New York Times, Parents, InStyle, Refinery29, and elsewhere. Her work has also been syndicated by ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, and Women’s Health, among others. In addition to her stories reaching millions of readers, content she's written and edited has qualified for a Bell Ringer Award and received a Communicator Award.

Katherine has a BA in English and art history from the University of Notre Dame and an MA in art business from the Sotheby's Institute of Art (with a focus on marketing/communications). She covers a wide breadth of topics: she's written about how to find the very best petite jeans, how sustainable travel has found its footing on Instagram, and what it's like to be a professional advice-giver in the modern world. Her personal essays have run the gamut from learning to dress as a queer woman to navigating food allergies as a mom. She also has deep knowledge of SEO/EATT, affiliate revenue, commerce, and social media; she regularly edits the work of other writers. She speaks at writing-related events and podcasts about freelancing and journalism, mentors students and other new writers, and consults on coursework. Currently, Katherine lives in Boston with her husband and two kids, and you can follow her on Instagram. If you're wondering about her last name, it’s “I go to dinner,” not “Her huge ego,” but she responds to both.