Over the weekend, the 2026 Cannes Film Festival came to a close. Jordan Firstman’s directorial debut Club Kid, quickly emerged as the sleeper hit of the week, selling to A24 for $17 million after a tense bidding war. Meanwhile, on the red carpets, stars kept things polished and glamorous in adherence to the famously strict dress code. From jury members Demi Moore and Ruth Negga to perpetual rulebreaker Kristen Stewart, celebrities flexed their sartorial prowess wearing custom and fresh-off-the-runway looks from fashion’s biggest names. A red carpet is a perfect opportunity for designers to extend the runway’s reach—but has current-season dressing returned to the spotlight, replacing the archival craze of recent years? Looking at this year’s Cannes, it certainly seems so.
The Cannes red carpet has always been about glitz, and that has included the finest of vintage dressing. The last few festivals were filled with notable examples, including Amal Clooney in Dior by John Galliano, Naomi Campbell in a striped 1997 Chanel couture dress, Simone Ashley in a floral Alexander McQueen spring 2000 set, Rooney Mara in a 1956 Givenchy teacup frock, and all of Bella Hadid’s envious vintage pulls from Jean Paul Gaultier to Tom Ford-era Gucci. And while Ashley and Hadid have continued their vintage streaks this year, there is a noticeable decrease in archival dressing across the board. Interestingly, in its stead, there has been a flurry of remakes. Hadid’s crocheted Schiaparelli paid homage to Jane Birkin’s backwards Pucci dress, while Anastasia Andrushkevich’s power blue chiffon gown recreated Princess Diana’s famous look from 1987.
“I think Cannes has become increasingly tied to luxury-brand partnerships and ambassador dressing,” Stewart’s stylist Tara Swennen tells Vogue. In many ways, awards and film festival seasons have become their own micro-economy, and all of the new creative directors have debut and sophomore runway collections to place on actors. Take the Oscars, which has quickly become one of fashion’s biggest deal-making nights. The most stylish clients, however, know how to perform a balancing act composed of honoring the house, dressing for the event’s requirements, and, hopefully, expressing themselves, the latter of which has become the most important factor needs to stand out.
