The Most Stylish Women Over 50 Owning It On The Red Carpet
In the past, actresses over 50 had a tough go of it in the entertainment world, finding themselves cast adrift when younger women took their place. But that’s changing — and we’re here for it. Now these ladies strut their stuff on the red carpet knowing they’re the epitome of style and cool. Here’s proof, as if you needed any, that 50 is the new 30.
1. Helen Mirren
When: 2021
Where: The 74th Annual Cannes Film Festival
Helen Mirren is for certain one of the most glamorous older women in the world and her ability to conquer a red carpet is positively unparalleled. The then-75 year old dazzled in a golden yellow Dolce & Gabbana dress at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival — and fashion magazines fell over themselves to talk about how beautiful and radiant she looked.
2. Sandra Bullock
When: 2022
Where: The Lost City premiere
When Sandra Bullock’s film The Lost City came out in March 2022, just after the lockdown that stopped movie premieres in their tracks, she proved she hadn’t lost her ability to rock a red carpet. Far from it. She wore an amazingly eye-catching pink Elie Saab ruffle dress paired with, wait for it, black thigh-high boots. An unlikely combo, yes, but one that really worked.
3. Sarah Jessica Parker
When: 2019
Where: The 8th Annual New York City Ballet Fall Fashion Gala
Not many people can pull off a frilly hot pink gown, regardless of their age. But Sarah Jessica Parker sure did here. She wore this creation to the New York City Ballet Fall Fashion Gala — complete with mismatched shoes, just like her Sex and the City character Carrie Bradshaw once wore in an episode — and it was a big hit.
4. Jamie Lee Curtis
When: 2019
Where: The Golden Globes
Starting to turn gray? It’s nothing to worry about, as award-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis proved in 2019. That year the then-60 year old arrived at the Golden Globes with her hair in a sleek, shiny white ’do. This elegant but edgy look — and her matching white dress with its daring thigh-high split — almost broke Twitter that night. Fans went wild.
5. Elizabeth Hurley
When: 2019
Where: Rocketman premiere
Elizabeth Hurley is of course best known for “THAT dress,” the Versace safety-pin number she wore while walking the red carpet with Hugh Grant back in 1994. It made her a star. And decades later, her fashion sense is just as sharp. Check out this sparkling white pantsuit — also a creation of Versace — which she wore to the London premiere of Rocketman in 2019.
6. Halle Berry
When: 2021
Where: The 93rd Annual Academy Awards
Halle Berry chose pink for the 2021 Oscars — and it turned out to be the perfect color for her. The Dolce & Gabbana number saw her named one of the best-dressed attendees of the night. The star’s stylist Lindsay Flores later told Vogue magazine that the dress had taken well over 200 hours to create. But it was most certainly worth all that time and effort.
7. Susan Sarandon
When: 2021
Where: The 55th Annual Country Music Association Awards
Susan Sarandon loves being in her 70s. She told Harper’s Bazaar magazine in 2019, “When your sense of time has an ending and isn’t finite, like how it feels when you’re young — when you have an understanding that time is precious — you have a tendency not to waste energy on the small stuff.” Sarandon added, “I wear suits a lot because they’re so comfortable” — like this showstopper from 2021.
8. Jane Fonda
When: 2015
Where: The 19th Annual Hollywood Film Awards
You’re never too old for a crop top and Jane Fonda wore a classy one to the Annual Hollywood Film Awards in 2015, where she was receiving the Hollywood Supporting Actress Award. “Fonda may have warmly received her honor with a charming speech, but it was her red carpet look that stole the show,” Instyle magazine reported. “She slipped into an ivory Balmain creation that elegantly showcased her greatest assets.”
9. Jennifer Lopez
When: 2019
Where: The Vanity Fair Oscar Party
The ageless J-Lo still looks flawless wherever she goes. Among her most recent iconic looks was this one at the Academy Awards party. The dress was designed by Zuhair Murad and it looked like a fan or perhaps a peacock. Needless to say, it was a big hit, and Lopez surely has many more fashion hits to come as well.
10. Meryl Streep
When: 2019
Where: The 76th Venice Film Festival
Greying hair? You shouldn’t care. Meryl Streep wore what appeared to be her natural hair color, or very close to it, at the Venice Film Festival in 2019. She also brought out an eye-catching dress that was the perfect fit for her: a blue Givenchy number that looked like it’d been artfully splattered in paint. It was unusual, quirky, and perfectly her.
11. Cindy Crawford
When: 2018
Where: The Met Gala
Cindy Crawford still has that “it factor” that made her a star and she’s happy to prove it. In 2018 she wore a red dress to the Met Gala, one very reminiscent of the iconic frock she sported at the Oscars on the arm of Richard Gere back in 1991. She was 25 then but at the Met Gala she was 52 — and still looked fantastic.
12. Whoopi Goldberg
When: 2018
Where: The 90th Annual Academy Awards
Whoopi Goldberg doesn’t just go for style when she dresses for red carpets; she goes for comfort as well. At the 2018 Oscars she wore a colorful floral dress designed by Christian Siriano, one with pockets no less. And underneath it there was something the cameras couldn’t see. Instead of heels on her feet she had combat boots — much easier to walk around in.
13. Lucy Liu
When: 2019
Where: The Tony Awards
Can you believe Lucy Liu’s in her 50s now? She’s one of those lucky celebs who just seem to defy aging. The actress credits exfoliation (with no soap), proper make-up removal, and a good healthy diet for her young looks. As we can see from events such as the 2019 Tony awards, where she was considered one of the best-dressed attendees, what she’s doing is very much working.
14. Taraji P. Henson
When: 2021
Where: The 2021 Primetime Emmy Awards
Henson, then-51 years old, wore a very daring and very dazzling gown to the Emmy Awards in 2021. It was an Elie Saab creation with a plunging neckline and silver sequins that shimmered under the lights. Just visible under the dress was her equally bold footwear —6-inch heeled suede sandals, no doubt hard to walk in but very stylish.
15. Padma Lakshmi
When: 2021
Where: The 2021 Billboard Music Awards
Top Chef presenter Padma Lakshmi has got it and she’s not afraid to flaunt it. To celebrate her 50th birthday in 2020, she wrote on Twitter, “50 is the new 30, feel like I’m just getting started.” And a year later Lakshmi wore a spectacular bejeweled white suit, a Christian Siriano creation that purposely left little to the imagination, at the Billboard Music Awards.
16. Rita Moreno
When: 2018
Where: The 90th Annual Academy Awards
Living legend Rita Moreno never disappoints on the red carpet. At the 2018 Oscars she wore a recycled dress, the same one she’d had on in 1962 when she won Best Supporting Actress for West Side Story. With her beaming smile shining out continuously in front of the cameras, some might say she looked even better in the dress the second time around.
17. Julianne Moore
When: 2019
Where: The 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Film Festival isn’t just for movies — it’s for fashion, too. And in 2019 actress Julianne Moore proved she was one of the best-dressed older ladies in the business with the ensemble she wore to the Rocketman gala. It consisted of a beautiful metallic gown accentuated by a pink cape and long dangly earrings. All eyes were on her, quite rightly.
18. Angela Bassett
When: 2021
Where: The 93rd Annual Academy Awards
Angela Bassett wore a showstopping red dress to the Oscars in 2021, when she was 62 years old. But she humbly credited her team of stylists for the look. She told Vogue after the event, “I feel fortunate because all I have to do is show up and trust that when they’re done, I will look and feel like a queen.” She did.
19. Priscilla Presley
When: 2022
Where: The Met Gala
Priscilla Presley debuted a sure-to-be-iconic look at the 2022 Met Gala. She wore a hooded black gown from Prada, a matching headband covering some but not all of her bright red hair, and gold accessories from top to toe. As if that wasn’t enough, the then-76 year old walked the red carpet with young actor Austin Butler, who portrayed her late love Elvis Presley in that year’s biopic about the legendary singer.
20. Vanessa Redgrave
When: 2016
Where: The 69th annual Cannes Film Festival
Legendary British actress Vanessa Redgrave certainly counts as “old” — but old is what you make it. Here she is at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2016, one year after a major heart attack that very nearly claimed her life. She’s rocking white hair, a matching white outfit, and — most importantly of all — a happy and contented expression.
21. Julia Roberts
When: 2022
Where: Gaslit premiere
Shorts can and should be worn by anyone of any age. Just ask Julia Roberts. The then-54 year old actress wore a stylish Gucci ensemble to the New York premiere of her show Gaslit — plaid shorts, grey blazer, and a white shirt. The jewelry, including the quirky butterfly pin, was by Chopard. Never be afraid to try something a bit different for a red carpet event!
22. Oprah Winfrey
When: 2018
Where: A Wrinkle in Time premiere
When Oprah showed up at the premiere for A Wrinkle in Time, there wasn’t a wrinkle on her. (Sorry.) She looked ageless as ever in a navy blue dress from Atelier Versace, Jimmy Choo Romy shoes, and her trademark big glasses. It was a classy and sophisticated look that didn’t upstage any of the other stars on the same carpet.
23. Brooke Shields
When: 2021
Where: Glamour Celebrates 2021 Women of the Year Awards
Brooke Shields isn’t here for judgments based on age. “I think that we just, we’ve gotten used to [ageism],” she said on the Verywell Mind podcast in 2022. “And I obviously didn’t think to question it when I was in my 20s. It wasn’t until I got past 50 where I thought, ‘Wait a minute, there’s nobody out there talking to me. They’re overlooking me.’” The joke’s on them, though, because she looks amazing.
24. Patricia Clarkson
When: 2019
Where: The 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards
You’re never too old to wear haute couture and high heeled shoes. Patricia Clarkson chose a Zuhair Murad gown with a thigh slit for the 2019 SAG Awards and looked fantastic. Her stylist Victor Blanco told The Hollywood Reporter magazine that year, “She loves high heels and she said, ‘I can go and dance all night in those heels!’ Those are very, very high, like 6 inches!” But the then-59 year old Clarkson pulled it off.
25. Michelle Pfeiffer
When: 2018
Where: Ant-Man and the Wasp premiere
Michelle Pfeiffer was 60 years old when she appeared in Ant-Man and the Wasp and she opted for something youthful and vibrant at the premiere. She wore a black jumpsuit from Saint Laurent, which Pfeiffer looked great in. Come 2021 she told People magazine, “Aging happens to every single one of us. Once you accept that it unburdens you.” Darn right.
26. Ellen Burstyn
When: 2019
Where: Rocketman premiere
It seems that Ellen Burstyn will never give up acting. She told AARP in 2019, “I must say I’m very pleased and very grateful that I’m 86 and still working — a lot.” That’s not all, though. She also still looks both fantastic and stylish. Her appearance at the Rocketman premiere that same year, wearing colorful clothes and her natural hair color, confirmed that.
27. Nicole Kidman
When: 2019
Where: The 76th Annual Golden Globe Awards
Nicole Kidman was 51 years old when she wore an extremely figure-hugging burgundy gown to the Golden Globes. As if that wasn’t enough, she also carried a quirky disco-ball-shaped clutch to go along with it. The ensemble was spectacular enough that it managed to overshadow the awkward moment Kidman had at the event: inadvertently ignoring Rami Malek when he was onstage with her.
28. Salma Hayek
When: 2022
Where: The 28th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards
Then-55 year old Salma Hayek looked amazing in her pink dress at the 2022 SAG Awards. What’s her secret? Well, she’s been open about aging and the menopause but made it clear that they don’t define her or any woman. She told the show Red Table Talk in 2021, “You can hold your own at any age, you can dream at any age, you can be romantic at any age. We have the right to be loved for who we are at the place that we are.”
29. Goldie Hawn
When: 2017
Where: The 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards
After the 2017 Golden Globe Awards, newspaper the Daily Express ran the headline: “Age-defying Goldie Hawn stuns as she cozies up to Kurt Russell.” And, well, it was easy to see why that appearance in particular caught the attention of the media. Hawn was 71 years old at that point but she looked so much younger in her tight black gown.
30. Julie Andrews
When: 2022
Where: The 48th AFI Life Achievement Award Gala Tribute
Julie Andrews received a Life Achievement Award from AFI in 2022 and she chose a beautiful outfit for the occasion. It was a very classy navy blue number that suited her perfectly, providing a masterclass in how to dress for the red carpet. Andrews told her audience at the event, “I’ve been the most lucky lady,” and looking at her it was impossible to disagree.
31. Viola Davis
When: 2019
Where: The 71st Annual Emmy Awards
Viola Davis was everything at the 2019 Emmys. She wore a gorgeous black and white dress with a Forevermark diamond necklace, a combination that had fans going absolutely wild. But she prioritized comfort as well. Though she wore high heels on the red carpet, she was adamant that she’d wear sneakers for the actual show. And who’d tell Viola Davis no?
32. Glenn Close
When: 2022
Where: The Met Gala
Glenn Close did her very first Met Gala in 2022, at the age of 75, and she nailed it. She wore a bright pink suit and embellished cape from Valentino. And she looked delightfully happy to be doing so, joking in a Vogue video diary that she was “going to the grocery store.” As for her hair? She kept it its natural white.
33. Sharon Stone
When: 2021
Where: The 74th annual Cannes Film Festival
Sharon Stone was a sex symbol in her youth but nowadays she actually likes her appearance more. “I’m so grateful to my body,” she told Allure magazine in 2019. “When I was younger, everybody was telling me what was wrong with my body — too this, too that.” As you can see, her happiness at aging was very evident when she attended Cannes in 2021.
34. Catherine Zeta-Jones
When: 2021
Where: The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards
Zeta-Jones looked truly stunning in red at the 2021 Emmys. HuffPost even wrote on Twitter at the time, “Yep, Catherine Zeta-Jones just did that.” The actress was in her early 50s at that point but it made absolutely no difference. Her husband Michael Douglas told cameras on the red carpet, “I can’t believe my luck,” and neither could anyone else.
35. Diane Keaton
When: 2022
Where: Mack & Rita premiere
Diane Keaton has a red carpet style and she’s stuck with it for years, dressing herself rather than relying on a stylist. You’ll remember the hats, the glasses, the shirts. But in 2022 she went all out for the premiere of her movie Mack & Rita and wore not only one of her trademark hats but also an all-black ensemble of turtleneck, miniskirt, and belt.
36. Robin Wright
When: 2017
Where: The 69th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards
Actress Robin Wright looked stunning in her shimmering black dress at the 2017 Emmy Awards. Then again, she always does. That same year she told People magazine in an interview, “I’m not digging the brown spots I’ve got going on at this age. But guess what? You’ve got to welcome them all.” Can you see any brown spots, though?!
37. Uma Thurman
When: 2022
Where: The 94th Annual Academy Awards
Uma Thurman used the 2022 Oscars to pay a little tribute to one of her greatest ever hits: Pulp Fiction. She was all in understated, sophisticated black and white, just like her character from that film. And even though she was 51 years old at that point, Thurman seemingly had barely aged a day since she first starred in the Tarantino classic.
38. Jennifer Aniston
When: 2020
Where: The 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards
Happiness was shining out of Jennifer Aniston’s every pore at the 2020 SAG Awards. And why shouldn’t it? She looked stunning, she was wearing a beautiful dress from Dior, she got to reunite with ex-husband Brad Pitt backstage and show him how well she was doing, and she took home the award for best female actor in a drama series.
39. Cate Blanchett
When: 2019
Where: The Zurich Film Festival
When accepting her Golden Icon Award at the Zurich Film Festival, Cate Blanchett dressed… as a golden icon. Needless to say, she looked absolutely stunning in the sparkling Jean Paul Gaultier dress. She was 50 years old at the time, though she didn’t look it, and throughout her entire career she hasn’t put a single foot wrong on the red carpet.
40. Sigourney Weaver
When: 2022
Where: The Met Gala
Anything goes at the Met Gala but in 2022 Sigourney Weaver chose something classy and understated. She wore a dress from designer Michael Kors — and took him with her to the event as well. Safe to say Weaver didn’t look her age, though she wouldn’t have minded if she did. Back in 2009 she told Parade magazine, “You have a different perspective as you get older that I think makes everything taste better and be more fun.”