The 12 best red carpet re-wears of all time, from Halle Berry to Princess Anne

Wearing a dress more than once shouldn’t be headline-worthy stuff. But in a world where celebrities are constantly bombarded with free clothes by brands hopeful for publicity, a high-profile figure who chooses to keep and re-wear their red carpet gowns is a relatively rare thing.

And yet, if attention is what they seek, a re-wear is an inspired way to go about it. Remember when Gwyneth Paltrow wore a modern iteration of her 1996 red Gucci by Tom Ford suit to the label’s show in 2021? Or the 2020 Baftas, when the Princess of Wales was one of the only guests to adhere to the “sustainable” dress code by re-wearing an Alexander McQueen dress? In fact, the Royal family have long been setting an example for others in the public eye – Princess Anne regularly steps out in clothes she first wore 30 or 40 years ago.

Now, the latest person to do a memorable re-wear is Halle Berry, who walked this week’s Elie Saab catwalk show in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, wearing the same gown in which she collected her Academy Award for Best Actress in 2002.

Of course, bodies change, and trends change, but this shouldn’t be a reason not to treasure and re-wear old clothes. Although some use this as a humblebrag, showing the world that they can still fit into clothes they wore decades ago, the positives are much more powerful. For less than the cost of a high-street dress, and a little imagination, you can have clothing altered into something that feels fresh again – and fits you like a glove. Again, the Princess of Wales is the most famous champion of this approach, but Cate Blanchett has done this with several red-carpet looks too.

“Re-working and altering existing pieces in your wardrobe is a creative and sustainable way to elevate your style without buying anything new,” says Layla Sargent, founder of The Seam, an online platform which connects customers with “makers” who can alter or repair clothing and accessories. “Clothing that fits well never goes out of style, so small adjustments like tapering seams and adjusting straps are a great way to make any item look expensive.”

It’s an attitude well worth embracing at this time of year when we dust off the special-occasion gear that we wore for last year’s Christmas parties. If you’re wondering whether it’s appropriate to wear the same thing again, take it from a fashion editor: you absolutely can – just consider this stylish lot your inspiration…

Halle Berry

When Berry won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2002, for her role in Monster’s Ball, she wore a memorable Elie Saab gown featuring a sheer, flower-embroidered top, with a silk-taffeta skirt and train. So it was quite a moment when she walked the catwalk at the Elie Saab show in Riyadh this week in the same gown, 22 years on. The event also featured performances from Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez, so that’s saying something. So is the fact that there were, apparently, no alterations made to the dress.

“There are some moments in life that just happen and they change our lives forever,” Berry wrote on Instagram afterwards. “Winning an Academy Award in my Elie Saab gown was one of those moments for me. Thank you Mr Saab for being a part of the tapestry of my life as we have been inextricably connected for 22 years now.”

Cate Blanchett

Blanchett is a serial red carpet outfit-repeater, and her look for the 2023 SAG Awards was one of her most creative examples. The actress wore the lace top from an Armani Privé gown that she wore to the 2014 Golden Globes and 2018 Cannes Film Festival, and teamed it with an Armani Privé black sequin column gown over the top. The sequin gown was then re-worn later that year over a sheer harlequin motif top.

“It should be completely unremarkable, the idea of re-wearing [clothes], because we do it in our daily lives,” she told the Business of Fashion. “We do it out of habit, we do it out of choice, we do it out of necessity.”

The Duchess of Sussex

The Princess of Wales may be the one member of the Royal family most celebrated for reworking and re-wearing her clothes, but the Duchess of Sussex proved that she’s just as much of a fan when she rewore a Carolina Herrera gown in October for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles gala.

We’d last seen her wear the gown in 2021 for the Salute to Freedom gala in New York, for which her hair was swept back into an updo, and accessorised by diamond earrings. For its second outing, the Duchess updated the design by having the overskirt removed, and styling it with relaxed, wavy hair – much more 2024.

The Princess of Wales

There have been just a handful of appearances from the Princess of Wales this year while receiving and recovering from treatment for cancer, but Trooping the Colour in June was an exception.

Sartorially, she was on message, re-wearing a white, tailored Jenny Packham dress last seen in May 2023 during the King’s Coronation weekend. The dress was updated with a new black and white striped bow at the collar, and an extra stripe at the waist – a very stylish way to pay homage to the King.

Gwyneth Paltrow

Gucci suit at the 1996 VMAs and at a Gucci show in 2021

One of Paltrow’s most memorable red carpet outfits was the red velvet suit she wore to the VMAs in 1996, designed by Tom Ford during his tenure at Gucci. So when she wore a modern iteration of it to Gucci’s 2021 Love Parade show in Los Angeles, the now-and-then pictures went viral. It’s also resounding proof that a great velvet suit never goes out of style.

Jane Fonda

You don’t need to leave it years before giving a look a second outing, even if you’re as famous as Jane Fonda. In 2016, she wore the same Saint Laurent suit twice within the space of about six weeks: first in Paris at the label’s autumn/winter 2016 menswear show, and again at an event for the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. Because, if you have a Saint Laurent suit, why wouldn’t you?

Naomi Campbell

For an appearance at Cannes this year, the supermodel worked with super-stylist Law Roach to get hold of a Chanel couture dress that she first wore on the catwalk in 1996. This time around, she did away with the slip underneath and wore her hair loose and natural – arguably looking even better than she did the first time around.

Princess Anne

She may be the Princess Royal, but Anne is the undisputed queen of re-wears, keeping pieces in circulation for decades. Take this dress she wore to the Royal Albert Hall in 1989, accessorised with black evening gloves and a velvet choker. It re-emerged in 2005 when she attended a dinner in London to raise funds for Save the Children.

Glenn Close

Glenn Close is further proof that a formal suit is a reliable investment – and nor does it have to be black. At a Ralph Lauren event in April, she wore the same cream, embellished suit she wore to the 2019 SAG Awards.

“I’m very very proud to be re-wearing this suit that I wore five years ago at the SAG Awards,” Close said on Instagram. “Beautiful, beautiful classic Ralph Lauren suit but this one happens to be covered with tiny Swarovski crystals. I feel like a million bucks.”

Keira Knightley

Knightley clearly adored the pale pink Chanel dress she first wore to a pre-Bafta party in 2008. She wore it a second time for a charity gala in 2013, but it got its most important outing later that year for her South of France wedding. The knee-length design was from the 2006 couture collection and teamed with a custom Chanel ivory tweed jacket and ballerina pumps. Coco would surely approve.

Kate Moss

As partywear archives go, Moss’s is probably one of the finest, and she dipped into it for Coty’s 100th anniversary party back in 2004. Her choice? A vintage black, knee-length slip dress with a feathered Bardot neckline, last seen in Cannes in 1998, when she attended the premiere of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas on the arm of then-boyfriend Johnny Depp.

Nicole Kidman

More Chanel, this time on Nicole Kidman. The actress walked the 2023 Met Gala red carpet in the same Chanel couture gown that she wore in a Chanel No. 5 ad in 2004. The pale pink gown, designed by Karl Lagerfeld, was rendered in silk tulle and boasted 250 pink ostrich feathers, and more than 3,000 crystals and sequins.