Emmys 2026: the blue carpet’s study in ceremony and spectacle
Zendaya, Nicole Kidman and Selena Gomez led a fashion-heavy procession at the 78th Primetime Emmys in Los Angeles, where the carpet was emphatically blue.
The 78th Primetime Emmys brought television’s familiar collision of performance, prestige and occasion dressing to Los Angeles. Zendaya, Nicole Kidman and Selena Gomez were among the stars on the blue carpet, alongside actors associated with The Pitt, Pluribus, Hacks and Widow’s Bay.
The Guardian’s fashion gallery documents a field of looks that moved between classic Hollywood polish and deliberate theatricality. Zendaya wore a custom crystal Prada gown, while Gomez offered a subtler reference to the Emmy statuette. Kidman chose a tea-length gown, and Colman Domingo made a case for formalwear beyond the black tuxedo in a mandarin-collar jacket with frog buttons and cream silk trousers.
Colour became one of the evening’s recurring signals. Red appeared against the blue carpet, including in Mariska Hargitay’s glittering sequinned gown and Cailee Spaeny’s Miu Miu dress, while a number of attendees opted for backless silhouettes. Elsewhere, black velvet, metallics, cream tailoring and pale blue gowns extended the evening’s broad visual vocabulary.
The carpet also reflected the industry’s overlapping economies of celebrity, character and programme loyalty. Cast members from The Pitt, Pluribus, Hacks and Widow’s Bay arrived amid a wider awards conversation that included nominees from shows such as Euphoria, Slow Horses, The Diplomat and The Bear.
The supplied gallery reports wins for Rhea Seehorn, who took outstanding lead actress in a drama series for Pluribus, and Jean Smart, who won outstanding lead actress in a comedy series. It also includes selected results involving The Pitt and Widow’s Bay, although the material notes that the fashion gallery is not a complete or independently verified account of the awards.
