Zendaya traded gothic glamour for shimmering spider-webs as she arrived at the London premiere of Spider-Man: Brand New Day in London.
The actress wore a couture ivory Tamara Ralph gown, featuring a sculpted bodice and mermaid tail draped in delicate crystal threads to mimic the gossamer strands of a spider’s web.
Rather than relying on the superhero’s signature red-and-blue palette or gothic all-black looks she’s sported at earlier premieres, Wednesday’s ensemble wove the film’s central motif more subtly into the construction of the dress.
The 29-year-old’s hair and beauty choices were a noticeable departure from the styling at the Los Angeles premiere on Tuesday night. Gone were the dramatic wet-look “spider bangs” that mimicked spiders’ legs. Instead, Zendaya wore her hair in loose, voluminous natural waves.
Tom Holland, who plays Spider-Man, wore a burgundy Louis Vuitton suit with a matching tie and statement spider brooch. The couple have harmonised their red carpet looks throughout this press tour, following the announcement by Holland during an interview with Esquire in June that they had married.
Zendaya, who plays Michelle Jones-Watson, the love interest of Spider-Man’s alter-ego Peter Parker, has become almost as famous for dressing for her films as she has for starring in them, thanks to the vision of her stylist Law Roach, including red carpet looks for films such as Challengers, Dune: Part Two and The Odyssey.
For the Los Angeles premiere on July 27, Zendaya embraced the darker side of the Spider-Man universe in a black satin corset dress by Ashi Studio, complete with antennae and surrounded by sweeping pleats and an imposing architectural train.
Celebrity hairstylist Ursula Stephen extended the theme through Zendaya’s beauty look, styling her fringe into wet-look “spider bangs” that tapered across her forehead to resemble spindly legs.
But London isn’t the first time Zendaya has leaned into understatement on this press tour. In Berlin, she wore a custom black Louis Vuitton leather two-piece made up of a cropped vest and low-slung skirt.
Rather than building the Spider-Man references into the clothing itself, the storytelling came through the accessories. Oversized Lydia Courteille spider-web earrings, set with sapphires, aquamarines and tanzanites, were paired with a co-ordinating ring, while make-up artist Ernesto Casillas revealed he created deliberately “spidery” lashes to echo the jewellery.
In Rome, Zendaya also had spider-webs woven throughout her dress while dipping into the archives in a sheer black Giorgio Armani gown from the designer’s spring 1990 collection.
Silver cobweb-like beading stretched across the sheer fabric and nude underlay, making the connection with Spider-Man rather less subtle. Roach shared on Instagram that he and Zendaya “only wear Italian when in Italy”, although the jewellery was from the decidedly New York Tiffany & Co.
In Mexico City, the arachnid dressing continued with a more gothic approach when Zendaya wore an asymmetric black Ashi Studio couture gown combining smooth black fabric with intricate web-like detailing across one side of the body. Long strands of fringe fell towards the floor like trailing webs, while Jacob & Co spider earrings cemented the motif.
Her towering bouffant hairstyle, reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, brought a touch of the swinging Sixties to the otherwise dark and moody look.
Across the promotional tour, Zendaya and Roach have interpreted the same superhero through remarkably different lenses: from custom leather to delicate archival threads.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day follows a solitary Peter Parker four years after the events of No Way Home. As Spider-Man (Holland) struggles with loneliness and a visceral physical mutation, he must stop a mind-controlling threat alongside The Punisher and The Hulk.
The film is released in UK cinemas on July 31.
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