Style Solutions Oscars Special: Best and worst dressed over the years including Michelle Yeoh and Zendaya

The countdown is on to the 96th Academy Awards ceremony which will be held at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 10. All of the awards ceremonies have been leading up to the Oscars and with Emma Stone favourite to win Best Actress (Poor Things). All we want to know is what she will be wearing and who will end up on the best and worst dressed lists. 

This week on Style Solutions Associate Editor Marina Licht and Lifestyle reporter Natalie Dixon discussed the Oscars best and worst dressed. There have been plenty of outfits to choose from over the 96 years but it seems no one can bring back the Old Hollywood style of legends such as Audrey Hepburn, Julia Andrews and Marilyn Monroe. 

Oscars: Who wore it better - Sharon Stone vs Zendaya?

In 1998 Sharon Stone wore a classic white shirt tucked into a sliver maxi skirt. Not exactly the red carpet style we usually see and at the time ended up getting her on the worst dressed list. However, fast forward to 2022 and Zendaya paid homage to the actress by wearing a cropped shirt and silver maxi skirts by Valentino Haute Couture. Zendaya looked impeccable, possibly because when it comes to fashion Zendaya can do no wrong but it is interesting how the same outfit on different people can make a difference to which list you end up on. 

Iconic Oscars outfits: The good, the bad & the bizarre 

A pink dress on the red carpet these days is nothing new thanks to Valentino and the Barbie Movie championing the colour. But back in 1999 when Gwyneth Paltrow won her first Oscar and wore a pink Ralph Lauren gown it was seen as brave. Stylists seemed to prefer to stay on the safe side and would opt for classic colours such as black, white, gold or silver - which can sometimes lack inspiration. 

The red carpet is seen as a way to dazzle and shine and look your absolute best. Not sure if the Icelandic singer Björk got the memo when she wore a ‘Swan dress’ by Marjan Pejoski in 2001. Celine Dion is another who opted for the weird and wonderful when she wore a white backwards tuxedo in 1999. The outfit was created by John Galliano at Dior and was paired with a matching trilby style hat - but that didn’t make it look any better. 

Best dressed Oscars 2023

Last year we saw Cara Delevingne look stunning in a satin red gown by Elie Saab's fall/winter 2021 and Best actress winner Michelle Yeoh looked ethereal in a white Dior Couture dress which featured feathers of ivory silk organza. 

Oscars 2024 best dressed: What should the celebrities wear?

According to research by Jovani, the luckiest designer to wear to an award show is Armani. Over the last decade, Armani has been worn the most amongst winners, featuring on 10 winning ladies (12% of all actresses analysed). Armani has notably been worn by Jessica Chastain at the 2022 Oscars, Renée Zellweger in 2020 at the Golden Globes and Zendaya (over webcam) at the 2020 Emmys.

So we will be keeping all eyes on any nominees wearing Armani this Sunday. But it’s not just about the dress, there is also the skincare preparation, hair, makeup and expensive jewellery to think about - but that’s another story …….. 

Natalie Dixon is NationalWorld’s Lifestyle reporter. If you liked this article and want to read more about celebrities, fashion and beauty you can follow Natalie Dixon on X (Twitter) here.