The Oscars definitely isn't the last award show of the year. (It is only February, mind you.) But it does close the chapter on what's considered red-carpet season, with celebrities and stylists flocking to L.A., glitzed to the hilt in fresh-off-the-runway gowns for the occasion. Those gilded statuettes certainly are prestigious, yet the Academy Awards aren't historically a breeding ground for boundary-pushing fashion — save, of course, for Björk's infamous swan dress. The event is consistently glamorous, but relatively safe when it comes to the gowns. However, we have some pretty high expectations for this year's sartorial showing, mostly because of the people confirmed to attend. Seriously: Just look at what these actors wore to their first-ever Oscars red carpets, and you'll be convinced, too.
Some of this year's nominees, such as Ruth Negga and Isabelle Huppert, will be attending the ceremony for the first time. But for the most part, those up for awards or set to present at the Oscars have worked the step-and-repeat many times before: Meryl Streep has been going since 1979, while Dakota Johnson first set foot on the red carpet when she was just 10. Their careers and approach to personal style may have evolved over the years, but their first gowns stand the test of time. Whatever shakes out at this year's awards for those nominated, their fashion choices make them forever winners in our eyes.
Before the carpet gets rolled out at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, we dug through the fashion archives to highlight the first Oscar gowns of the celebrities that will light up your screens on Sunday evening. Even if you fast-forward to more recent Hollywood events like the SAG Awards and the Golden Globes, you'll know to brace for the unexpected when it comes to the fashion. For now, though, simply bask in a good style throwback — because most of these truly do stand the test of time.
It wouldn't be Oscar night without Meryl! The Hollywood legend (who's nominated for the 20th time this year) attended her first Academy Awards in 1979, in a sheer-panelled, flouncy-sleeve black dress. Nowadays, she runs with the like of Riccardo Tisci and Pierpaolo Piccioli for her red carpet needs. But, hey, her vintage dress does remind us of the aesthetics both European designers have been pushing lately — maybe for the Oscars, Piccioli can give this vintage Streep look a Valentino couture refresher.
Photo: Ron Galella/WireImage.
We expect best actress nominee Natalie Portman to grace every red carpet in Dior these days. However, the first time she was up for a statuette, back in 2005, she turned to Alber Elbaz-era Lanvin.
Photo: JEFF HAYNES/AFP/Getty Images.
Emma Stone was hitting the Oscars after-party circuit before attending her events's official red carpet, but her 2012 debut didn't disappoint: Stone, who's nominated for best actress this year, went for a bold, high-neck Giambattista Valli, way before neck bows were trendy.
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage.
The 2017 Academy Awards are particularly important for Viola Davis: She became the first African American actress in the show's history to earn three nominations. It's hard to believe she only made her Oscar red-carpet debut less than a decade ago, in 2009, wearing a golden, halter-neck Reem Acra gown.
Photo: Dan MacMedan/WireImage.
Nicole Kidman started off her Oscar track record strong in 1991 with a peplum-belted Valentino mini dress. She'll be attending this year's ceremony as a nominee (it's her fourth time being up for a statuette). We don't expect her to go short with her ensemble, but the actress' recent red-carpet record — from a Victorian-inspired Alexander McQueen gown at the Golden Globes to a feathered Gucci number at the SAG Awards — makes us think she'll surprise us in one way or another with her dress choice.
Photo: Frank Trapper/Corbis/Getty Images.
Michelle Williams is up for a golden statue this time around; will she turn out in something similar to her 2006 Oscars getup? We're still not over this caped-sleeve Vera Wang number, which certainly established the actress as a fashion star in our eyes. Nicolas Ghesquière, let us know what you're thinking.
Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images.
Vera Wang is clearly a favourite designer for first-time Oscar attendees: Charlize Theron, too, turned to the designer back in 2000, when she was set to make her Academy Award debut. Many memorable gowns (and even a statuette) later, the actress will grace the red carpet once again this year — and we have our fingers crossed for an epic couture moment.
Photo: Steve Starr/CORBIS/Corbis/Getty Images.
Octavia Spencer's first Oscars were memorable on multiple counts: Most importantly, she won her category in 2012 — and she did so in a stunning, beaded Tadashi Shoji gown that took 1,000 hours (and 10 people) to create, per InStyle. She's up again for best supporting actress this year — and while she's shown a penchant for red-carpet pantsuits as of late, we're hoping she opts again for all-over embellishment for this year's Academy Awards.
Photo: Michael Buckner/Getty Images.
Well, there it is — photographic evidence that best supporting actress nominee Naomie Harris is unable to step on a red carpet without absolutely slaying us all. This particular shut-down comes courtesy of then-design student Michael Badger, as part of the Red Carpet Green Dress competition back in 2013.
Photo: Jeff Vespa/WireImage.
Shirley MacLaine has been attending the Oscars since 1959 — and for her first ceremony as a nominee, she turned to legendary costume designer Edith Head for a gown. "What I remember is that brown satin dress cinching in my waist to about a 23, and I have not counted that low since," she told The Hollywood Reporter. "I worked with Edith Head a lot when I was under contract to Paramount, and then again when I went over to Universal. She was the one who could intimidate all the producers when she walked into an office. It was good to get to know her very well." This year, she's in presenter mode, and we hope MacLaine will channel some of that classic Hollywood glamour on the 2017 red carpet.
Photo: Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images.
Do we think Alessandro Michele can whip up a spring '17 Gucci version of Dakota Johnson's first-ever Oscars get-up back in 2000? (And of course Johnson was impossibly chic at the tender age of 10.)
Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage.
The year was 2004, and Scarlett Johansson attended the Oscars (then supporting the nominations for Girl With A Pearl Earring) in a mermaid-esque Alberta Ferretti. Clearly, her penchant for green gowns has stuck. She's set to present at the 2017 ceremony, and if we were to guess what hue her wardrobe's leaning towards...
Photo: Vince Bucci/Getty Images.
If there's an excuse to dress up in the fanciest thing you own, it's the Academy Awards. Leslie Mann took that very seriously for her very first appearance on the Oscars red carpet back in 2009, in a blinged-out Pamella Roland gown. The actress will be presenting at this year's ceremony — and we hope to see her do so in similarly sparkly fashion.
Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images.
Hailee Steinfeld was just 14 (yes, 14!) when she walked her first Oscar red carpet — as a nominee, no less. For the occasion, she did as any teen with an opportunity to dress up would dream and knocked on the door of Marchesa. The result was a dusty-pink, ballerina-esque frock that was much lovelier than any prom dress we ever came across. Six years later, Steinfeld is presenting at the 2017 Academy Awards, and we're betting she'll do so in an upgrade of that gown that's equally lovely but a little more grown-up.
Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images.
Felicity Jones is another one of those actresses who came into the red-carpet scene with what appears to be a fully-developed sense of style. The British actress consistently impresses at award shows (and reps her home country in her choice of designers) — including at her first-ever Oscars in 2014, when she arrived in a custom Alexander McQueen gown. We're hoping that Jones' confirmed attendance to the 2017 ceremony means we'll see our first fresh-off-the-runway, fall '17 gown get the Hollywood treatment, straight from London Fashion Week.
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage.
Is there anything more '90s than Halle Berry's velvet Valentino gown from the 1996 Oscars? We wouldn't be mad if she brought back this number from the archives to present this year.
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