Penélope Cruz reminded everyone exactly why she remains one of the most compelling presences in fashion when she stepped out in London on Wednesday, February 25, for a photocall promoting her upcoming film ‘The Bride!’. The 51-year-old actress arrived in a look pulled directly from the Jacquemus Fall runway, making her one of the first people to wear a piece from that collection on a red carpet. The dress itself was a long-sleeved black shift style featuring a dramatically low neckline and a skirt constructed entirely from shredded ribbons, giving the otherwise sleek silhouette an unexpected and textured finish. She kept the accessories understated with pearl chandelier earrings and simple black pumps, letting the architectural details of the garment do all the talking.
Her styling choices extended well beyond the dress. Cruz debuted a shoulder-grazing bob with soft side-swept bangs, a hairstyle she first unveiled at Paris Haute Couture Week in January, and the cut looked just as sharp in London. Her makeup leaned into her signature aesthetic with dark eyeliner, bronze eyeshadow, and a restrained pink lip that kept the overall look grounded rather than overwrought. The entire package felt considered and intentional in a way that only comes with someone who has spent decades developing an instinct for this kind of moment.
While the Jacquemus look generated plenty of conversation online, Cruz is no stranger to navigating the fashion world at the highest level. She has served as a brand ambassador for Chanel since 2018, a relationship that has taken her to countless couture shows and campaign shoots over the years. Just a month before the London appearance, she attended the Chanel Haute Couture show in Paris wearing a sheer pointelle bodycon dress paired with a matching cardigan, another understated but precise choice. Her ability to move between the world of avant-garde newcomers like Jacquemus and the storied traditions of Chanel speaks to a range that few celebrities manage to pull off convincingly.
The first Jacquemus piece from the latest runway just hit the carpet! pic.twitter.com/lr3SoyqFZw
— Up Next (@upnextdesigner) February 25, 2026
Cruz has also been increasingly candid about her feelings on aging and what it means to reach her fifties in the public eye. She told Elle that questions about her age have followed her since her twenties, but that turning 50 felt genuinely worth celebrating rather than something to deflect. “Now, it makes more sense to discuss turning 50. It’s a huge, beautiful thing, and I really want to celebrate that with all my friends. It means I’m here and I’m healthy, and it’s a reason to have a party,” she said. That perspective seems to have translated into a kind of ease and confidence that comes through in everything from her interviews to the way she carries herself on a red carpet.
Professionally, she has plenty to celebrate as well. ‘The Bride!’ is directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal and is set for release in theaters and IMAX on March 6. The film is a punk-rock reimagining of the classic ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ story relocated to 1930s Chicago, and Cruz plays Myrna Mallow, a detective who finds herself drawn into the chaotic world surrounding Frankenstein’s creature, played by Christian Bale, and his newly created companion, portrayed by Jessie Buckley. The supporting cast includes Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening, and Jake Gyllenhaal, making it one of the more starry ensembles assembled for a major release in some time. Cruz has described the film as a feminist retelling in which the Bride wakes up with her own voice rather than existing as a silent creation of someone else’s design.
Looking beyond ‘The Bride!’, Cruz’s schedule is impressively full. She has signed on for a new Nancy Meyers comedy alongside Jude Law and Owen Wilson, set for a Christmas 2027 release. Later this year she is also set to reunite on screen with her husband Javier Bardem in a psychological thriller called ‘The Bunker’, directed by Florian Zeller, in which she plays the wife of an architect hired by a billionaire to build a survivalist shelter.
The Jacquemus label, which Cruz wore so memorably in London, was actually founded in 2009 by Simon Porte Jacquemus when he was just 19 years old and had moved to Paris with virtually no money, naming the brand after his mother’s maiden name as a tribute after her death. The original ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ from 1935, the mythology Cruz’s new film draws from, was actually the first Hollywood sequel to be considered artistically superior to the original, a distinction it still holds in many film history circles. And Cruz herself won her Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2009 for ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’, becoming the first Spanish actress ever to win an Oscar.
What do you think of Penélope Cruz’s fashion choices lately? Share your thoughts in the comments.
