The MTV Movie Awards have this year gone through a sort of awkward-sounding rebrand as The MTV Movie & TV Awards, which looks like an attempt to compete with the Golden Globes and celebrate the medium in which it operates. I am not sure if Teen Wolf won any awards, but I do know that the celebs on the carpet did a bang-up job of underscoring the extra-fun glitz that this kind of more casual awards show should conjure.
It is always a full thrill when there are clear winners in the best-dressed department, so give it up to Taraji P. Henson, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Yara Shahidi, who each took their own version of stunning sequins out for a spin and truly dazzled.
Of course, it helps that they’re consistently some of the best-dressed in the game, but let’s recount: Henson, in rose gold, is working with a current trend but doesn’t succumb to it, letting the prim tea-length hem, long sleeves and and mock turtleneck offset the form-fitting liquid gold of her gown. Ross’s patchwork stunner is exactly her—quirky, unexpected, modern and chic. Shahidi continues to just kill me out here with her every look, and this one is no exception—a mermaidy disco-ball skirt with a satin princess top and bow heels, the kind of mix-and-match she pulls off like she invented it.
Not to be outdone, the sequins kind of mood continued. Allison Williams was ready for her cameo in The Last Days of Disco; Emma Watson was sprinkled with paillettes like iridescent caviar; Jasmine Sanders and Shay Mitchell were in a wildlife headspace.
Both Alisha Boe and Gigi Gorgeous were not playing on the gold lamé front—that is hella gold lamé—but I prefer the demure look Issa Rae is giving here, in a sweet navy leather sundress with pleats and eyeshadow to match. She looks like the dancing queen of my dreams.
Pants! Amy Landecker and Michelle Mitchenor are giving us throwback drop-crotch styles, though Mitchenor’s is far more party-ready than Landecker’s business-casual. Asia Kate Dillon, who by the way was fucking terrific on last night’s Billions finale, went fully BOLD with double-leather and the combination is a little bit Michael Jackson, a little bit cool LA scenester, a little bit “I might box you... but I’m not that pressed.”
Can you feel the love tonight? BFFs Snoop and Martha have a color palette a bit like the Joker’s, and yet it perfectly works, because they’re extremely happy to be here. Please note Martha chunking a deuce, again? Thanks.
There were a lot of hyper-feminine looks out there, too. Alexandra Daddario’s lace-and-undies look is fine, but Jasmine Tookes’s version is a bit more successful because she’s not tiptoeing around it; she’s like I’m a supermodel and I’m giving you boudoir VS Angel, deal with it. Kat Graham had a germ of an idea here but the fit isn’t working, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s look is conceptually cute but a bit twee for my tastes.
Take a moment to appreciate Rep. Maxine Waters, who is not only out here fighting for our rights every day and murking 45 on Twitter, but fully knows how to come correct on a red carpet. This lace gown fits her perfectly, is demure but stunning, and she is also wearing a CHOKER. Rep. Waters got tricks! I rather like Shelley Hennig’s tulle skater dress, perhaps specifically because she looks like a cool napkin swan; Storm Reidd’s lace slip dress and choker are especially cute and I wish she and Waters had taken some pics together. Zendaya switched it up for the evening and gave us something sweet and soft, a relaxing break from her fierce day-to-day slayage.
I also must respect the people who showed up ready for the club. Amandla Stenberg’s look was not my favorite tonight, mainly based on fit and fabric—there was something sort of old about the dress-blazer/granny slip-ons, and she looks so great normally (especially that buzz cut) that it just seemed to overwhelm her. Speaking of buzz cuts, your friend Cara Delevingne is accessorizing for her hairstyle, and in this party dress she looks like a sci-fi queen who mayyyybe will go rogue before night’s end. Cierra Ramirez’s matching satin bomber/skirt combo is mall-licious, while Gal Godot looks like she’s gonna end up at Cipriani Wall Street after this.
Hailee Steinfeld’s cut-out frock is, in theory, a LOOK, but this Easter lavender is not doing so well on the carpet; it’s washing out her complexion and reflecting the light to make her look a slight bit sickly. Next time! Rebecca Black is wearing almost exactly the look I wore to a drum ‘n’ bass rave in 1999 (she just needs platform nurse shoes), while Yvonne Orji’s bridging the difference between sexy and all-business. It’s pretty great, though the collar could be trimmed.
Your weekly reminder that the cute Stranger Things youth are still out here promoting Stranger Things...
... But the 13 Reasons Why teens are coming for that crown.
Couples’ skate! Moonlight’s Ashton Sanders and Jharrel Jerome look sharp and very of the Yachty era; Michelle Visage and RuPaul match less than I anticipated—maybe they need to define a category—but Ru’s suit is, eternally, perfectly tailored and sharp as hell. Big Sean looks, frankly, bonkers in that patchwork thingie, but maybe we need to see it close up, and besides Jhené Aiko’s DKNY separates are making up for it; good job, Jhené. Trevor Noah and Jordyn Taylor are kind of... just there. Like his comedy. Ayo!
I am really sorry to have to do this to you but here is Farrah Abraham (who?) in a maang tikka, bindi, sari, mehndi, etc. I don’t know why she is wearing this at all and she looks like shit, like it’s a costume she bought at Ricky’s during Halloween time and she’s trying to be cute? Compare this trash to, say, literally anything on this website; like, if you must do this at least try not to wear some garbage poly-rayon the color of bodega Tropical Punch. Show some goddamn respect.
Anyway, Millie Bobby Brown is cute in her cowboy boots and I’m glad she gets to wear flats tonight. Paris Jackson, put some effort into it. Shannon Purser is wearing a cute silhouette but the Off-Track Betting carpet pattern makes me want to rip out my eyes. Hope everyone had a fun Kentucky Derby!