Michelle Yeoh and Stephanie Hsu at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
Cover Michelle Yeoh and Stephanie Hsu, stars of ‘Everything, Everywhere, All At Once’ at Oscars 2023 awards (Photo: Getty Images)

Looking past the glitz of red carpet fashion, Oscar attendees of colour chose outfits that were woven with meaning

Even before Michelle Yeoh’s legendary win, the Oscars 2023 was destined to be a big night for Hollywood’s Asian community of actors, actresses and filmmakers. The Academy Awards, held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, was in its 95th edition—a few years shy of its centenary, and thus steeped even deeper in historical importance than other film awards like the Baftas or the Cannes Film Festival. It was also the first edition that seemed to welcome and celebrate talents of colour so unabashedly. This was nothing like the Oscars that Anna May Wong knew.

For one, the red carpet wasn’t even red, which was a shame, given the colour’s significance in Chinese culture. Instead, what Asian stars like Yeoh walked out onto on Oscar night was a “champagne” carpet, as The Academy called it, and they dominated it with spectacular ensembles that brought the awards to life.

Read more: Oscars 2023: The best red carpet looks, from Michelle Yeoh to Rihanna

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Michelle Yeoh accepts the Best Actress award for "Everything Everywhere All at Once" onstage during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Above Michelle Yeoh accepts the Best Actress award for ‘Everything, Everywhere, All At Once’ at the Oscars 2023 (Photo: Getty Images)

Yeoh, as if predicting her history-making Oscar moment, arrived in a white Dior haute couture gown that was at odds with the more fashion-forward red carpet looks she had showcased this awards season. Like the previous Best Actress winners of Oscar history—including Cate Blanchett, Jessica Chastain and Nicole Kidman, who were all present last night—the Everything, Everywhere, All At Once star didn’t merely wish to land on our “best-dressed” lists. She was intent on being immortalised, and her Dior dress, in all its simplicity, is as timeless as you can get.

You could say the same for Yeoh’s co-star, Ke Huy Quan, who has moved film fans with his wide-eyed wonder at being thrust into the spotlight, two whole decades after walking away from his acting career. In the past month, the Vietnamese-American actor has scooped up multiple awards for his role in Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. But upon the film’s release in 2022, Ke was still little-known. Giorgio Armani was one of the first fashion brands to loan him their suits for premieres, according to an interview with his stylist Chloe Takayanagi. 

And so it was another one of the Italian brand’s impeccable black tuxedos that Ke chose to wear when he finally accepted his first Oscar. He elaborated on his outfit choice on Instagram, writing, “The [Giorgio Armani] team has been so especially kind to me from the get-go… they made me feel so incredibly special. I will never forget it. So lucky to be wearing Giorgio Armani to what will be one of the most memorable nights of my life.”

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Ke Huy Quan, winner of Best Actor in a Supporting Role award for ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’  poses in the press room during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Above Ke Huy Quan on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Hong Chau attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kayla Oaddams/WireImage )
Above Hong Chau on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)

Other Oscar attendees chose to honour their Asian heritage instead, through subtle details and grand gestures alike. Hong Chau, one of The Whale’s standout stars, opted for the former, wearing a minimalist pink Prada gown with a Mandarin collar—a common feature of the Vietnamese traditional dress, the áo dài. Pakistani activist and Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai demonstrated that modest fashion had a place on the flashy red carpet as well. The 25-year-old, who produced the Oscar-nominated documentary Stranger at the Gate (2022), sparkled in a custom Ralph Lauren sequin gown, fitted with a sweeping skirt and a hood. It was a glamourous style moment for fellow hijab-wearing Muslim women to celebrate.

Speaking of celebration, director Kartiki Gonsalves and producer Guneet Monga had plenty of that to do when their film, The Elephant Whisperers, won the Oscar for the Best Documentary Short Film—a first for an Indian production. The two women eschewed Western dress and flaunted an anarkali-style dress and a traditional banarasi silk saree, respectively. A closer look at both outfits also revealed nods to their film. Monga’s saree was adorned with an elephant motif, while Gonsalves’s dress, designed by Indian couturier Rahul Mishra, featured lavish embroidery that “celebrates the human relationship with nature”, as Mishra described on Instagram.

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Malala Yousafzai attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images )
Above Malala Yousafzai on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga, winners of the Best Documentary Short Film award for "The Elephant Whisperers," pose in the press room during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Above Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)

Triangle of Sadness star Dolly De Leon also had an important message embedded into her Oscars look. The Filipina actress cut a striking figure in a black suit from Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini, which featured a red 3D flower, and that she matched with red gloves, red Manolo Blahnik heels, and a red clutch. All of it only made her bright blue ribbon, produced by the UN Refugee Agency in support of refugees, stand out against her lapel.

Not all Asian stars had a cause to support. But their presence alone was a triumph for diversity at the Oscars, which since 2015 was criticised with the trending social media hashtag, #OscarsSoWhite. In most cases, they outdid their White peers at the red carpet game.

See Bollywood star Deepika Padukone, who presented at the awards in a black velvet mermaid gown by Louis Vuitton. The classic silhouette turned the Indian actress into a vision of Old Hollywood glamour, and in fact echoed a look previously worn by Marilyn Monroe. (It’s also noteworthy that Padukone was joined by several celebrities of South Asian descent, including Mindy Kaling, British actor Riz Ahmed and RRR star N.T. Rama Rao Jr.)

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Dolly De Leon attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images)
Above Dolly De Leon on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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Deepika Padukone at the 95th Annual Academy Awards held at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Above Deepika Padukone on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Riz Ahmed attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kayla Oaddams/WireImage )
Above Riz Ahmed on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: N. T. Rama Rao Jr. attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kayla Oaddams/WireImage )
Above N. T. Rama Rao Jr on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)

Fan Bingbing was another guest who resembled the stars of the Oscars’ past. Sporting classic finger waves that were popularised by silver-screen icons like Bette Davis, the Chinese actress dialled up the drama in a Tony Ward gown with silver sequins, fitted with emerald green taffeta sleeves and a matching skirt. The dress took up significant red carpet real estate, and it was only one of four extravagant looks that Fan wore that night to mark her return to the Oscars after 10 years.

In contrast, Stephanie Hsu represented a new kind of Hollywood star. The Everything, Everywhere All At Once actress made her fresh-faced Oscar debut in a bubblegum pink taffeta bustier dress from Valentino, bringing colour to the awards in all senses of the word.

There was, in fact, one Oscar attendee whose job was built on that mission: Janet Yang, the veteran Hollywood producer who become the first Asian president of The Academy in 2022. Throughout her career, Yang has boosted Asian representation in Hollywood, producing films like The Joy Luck Club and Netflix’s Over the Moon. Since 2016, she has led The Academy’s campaign to diversify its membership. The result of her efforts was evident at the 95th Academy Awards, which also turned the spotlight on Asian talents behind the camera.

Daniel Kwan, one of the Oscar-winning directors of Everything, Everywhere All At Once, summed up what it meant for a Chinese-American filmmaker raised by immigrant parents to dominate an awards show that has historically overlooked people with his background. Emblazoned on the back of Kwan’s burgundy suit, which was inspired by an outfit Yeoh wears in his film, was a single word: “Punk”.

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, winners of the Best Director award for ’Everything Everywhere All at Once’ and Michelle Yeoh, winner of the Best Actress in a Leading Role award for ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ in the press room during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Above ‘Everything, Everywhere, All At Once’ director Daniel Kwan (left) and Michelle Yeoh at the Oscars 2023 awards (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Stephanie Hsu attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
Above Stephanie Hsu on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 12: Fan Bingbing attends the 95th Annual Academy Awards on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
Above Fan Bingbing on the Oscars 2023 red carpet (Photo: Getty Images)
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Janet Yang
Above The Academy president Janet Yang at the Oscars 2023 awards (Photo: Getty Images)

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