Mariska Hargitay turned the Emmys red carpet into a family tribute Monday night.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards host, 60, arrived in a custom crimson sequined Monse gown that deliberately echoed the look her mother, Hollywood icon Jayne Mansfield, wore in the 1956 film “The Girl Can’t Help It.” Hargitay’s choice anchored a night where color carried meaning as much as style.
While Hargitay went scarlet, several stars worked the opposite end of the spectrum. Louisa Jacobson, Grace Gummer and Hannah Einbinder each chose sleek black designs that kept the palette classic and restrained. The monochrome approach let tailoring and silhouette do the talking rather than embellishment.
Joy Sunday offered a lighter counterpoint. The “DTF St. Louis” star appeared in draped ivory Dior that softened the evening’s harder edges. Her co-star Linda Cardellini went for maximum texture in Yara Shoemaker Couture, a column dress covered top to bottom with mother-of-pearl squares that caught the light with every step.
The night’s boldest color play came from Ayo Edebiri, who paired a blue Chanel dress with a striking vermillion bow that functioned as the outfit’s exclamation point. Cailee Spaeny, the “Beef” star, matched her Miu Miu gown to her lipstick in coordinated red, a choice that read as effortless rather than calculated.
Zendaya, Selena Gomez and Nicole Kidman each landed on multiple best-dressed lists compiled by outlets covering the arrivals. Zendaya’s Prada look was paired with Mikimoto jewelry and a Rolex watch. Gomez wore Ralph Lauren Collection with Cartier jewelry. Kidman chose Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co. Pieces.
Colman Domingo and Michelle Pfeiffer also drew strong notice from fashion observers, with Domingo in Tom Ford and Tiffany & Co. Jewelry and Pfeiffer in Vivienne Westwood with Bulgari jewelry. The mix of heritage houses and emerging designers gave the carpet range beyond the expected names.
The ceremony marked the formal launch of awards season, with television’s biggest night setting the tone for the months of red carpets to follow. The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards took place Monday.
Hargitay’s host duties and her mother’s 1956 film reference gave the evening a through-line of Hollywood history meeting present stardom. Mansfield’s original costume for “The Girl Can’t Help It” helped establish the bombshell aesthetic of the era, and Hargitay’s updated version nodded to that legacy while functioning as contemporary high fashion.
The mother-of-pearl detailing on Cardellini’s dress and the architectural draping of Sunday’s Dior demonstrated how texture and construction could compete with pure color for attention. Edebiri’s bow, meanwhile, showed how a single accessory could reframe an entire look.
Several stars stuck to proven combinations of luxury houses and heritage jewelers, a safe approach that nonetheless delivered polish. The Rolex on Zendaya’s wrist and the Bulgari at Pfeiffer’s neck signaled how watches and fine jewelry have become as integral to red-carpet storytelling as the gowns themselves.
