Much has been written about Anne Hathaway’s “style shift” over the past couple of years, which has seen the star – who shot to fame playing Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries back in 2001 – end her long-term love affair with floral prints and sweetheart necklines and turn her attention to altogether more experimental fashion, instead. Nowadays, it’s not unusual to see Hathaway, 41, in a hooded Alaïa gown, directional denim crop top or a sky-high platform.
Still, it’s her outings in support of her friend Donatella Versace (Hathaway is “a woman after my own heart!” the designer previously told Vogue) that tend to find Anne at her boldest – and most confident. Take, for example, the dominatrix-inflected overtones of the star’s dress for Versace’s autumn/winter 2024 show at Milan Fashion Week tonight. Between the corset bodice, the rubbery high-shine finish, and those fiercely pointed heels, this was a look to make the Grand High Witch (Hathaway’s glamorous but sadistic character in The Witches) proud. The new-season Versace woman has a “rebel attitude and a kind heart”, according to Donatella. “The woman is a good girl with a wild soul. She is prim but sexy. Don’t mess with her!” All of which just about sums up the latter-day Anne Hathaway: a Hollywood sweetheart in increasingly un-PG looks.
Anne’s traffic-stopping red dress was lifted directly from Donatella’s new autumn/winter 2024 collection – Rianne Van Rompaey wore it on the runway, where Gigi Hadid also made her first outing of the season. A predominantly black and red collection punctuated with punky accents such as spike chokers and metal hardware, an air of the ’80s prevailed on the runway, from the ski pants to the power shoulders to the clip-on vibe of the chunky gold earrings. The decade appears to be on the cusp of a major revival – frosted lipstick is trending, a Brat Pack documentary is in the works, and Miley Cyrus single-handedly made the case for root lift (and liberal use of Elnett) at the Grammys. Eighties baby Anne, for one, is ready.
