I look at red carpet photos for a living, so I’m pretty used to gorgeous gowns and glam. But once in awhile, a premiere look absolutely stops me in my tracks—or, more accurately, my scroll—and literally takes my breath away. Enter Zendaya at the New York City premiere of The Odyssey, whose loose, undone (and extra-long) braid and soft, flushed makeup can only be described as “angelic.”
And I’m talking literally angelic, as the Emmy-winning actor wore a feathered strapless Matières Fécales gown with actual wings attached to her shoulders, leaning into the whole “I’m playing a legendary Greek goddess” theme of her red carpet dressing for the Odyssey press run. (She plays Athena in the movie, and while Athena doesn’t typically wear wings, she is sometimes depicted with them.)
Hairstylist Coree Moreno “effortless texture and romantic movement” with a beautifully soft fishtail braid that flowed all the way down Zendaya’s back to mid-hip. “Loose” was the key word here, as the hair was gathered gently back at the nape of her neck and braided, with the front portions left out of the style to frame her face in easy waves—waves that fluttered in the most gorgeous way as she walked the carpet. A few pieces of hair escaped the braid, adding a windswept texture to the overall style. Braids have been a key element of many of Zendaya’s The Odyssey looks, including the crown braid she wore to the London premiere and the milkmaid braids from Paris.
“I’ve always believed that hair should carry emotion, not just shape,” Moreno wrote on Instagram. “For this look, the goal was to create something that felt lived in, romantic, and weightless—as if it had always belonged to the moment.”
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Makeup artist Ernesto Casillas said the goal was “beautifully luminous and sun-kissed skin,” which he achieved with a base of “fresh, glowing skin” and some strategic cream blush layering. Casillas paired Prada Beauty’s Touch Blush shades Caffee and Cherry across Zendaya’s cheeks, nose, temples, and chin, where the sun would typically hit, and finished with just “a touch” of Prada Balm in Astral Pink. Does she not look like she just flew down from Mount Olympus to help us on our epic quest?
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