As the most anticipated event in the Hollywood calendar nears, the Oscars are the perfect night for A-Listers to showcase their most fashionable red carpet looks. This research highlights that almost a staggering third of all winners in a female acting category have dressed in black to accept their Academy Awards since the Oscars first began in 1929.   

Louis Vuitton is the luckiest designer from the Oscars 2024, as ‘Best Actress’ Emma Stone and ‘Best Supporting Actress’ Da’Vine Joy Randolph both collected their coveted awards while dressed by the French fashion house – despite Valentino and Giorgio Armani being named the luckiest designers for 2024.

The research conducted by fabric experts Dalston Mill Fabrics analyzed every dress or outfit worn by each winner of a ‘Best Actress’ and ‘Best Supporting Actress’ Academy Award in recorded history to establish whether the color and designer of a dress can affect the chances of taking home an Oscar.  

According to research, Black is the luckiest color to wear to the Academy Awards, and designers Giorgio Armani and Valentino rank as the joint luckiest fashion houses to wear on the red carpet, so pairing one of these was found to be the most likely option to increase nominees’ chances of taking home an Academy Award.   

However, the pastel designs worn by winners Emma Stone and Da’Vine Joy Randolph to this year’s ceremony have been an enormous success for Louis Vuitton, as this is only the third time in recorded history that the fashion house has been worn by a winner of either ‘Best Actress’ or ‘Best Supporting Actress’ – since Alicia Vikander wore an LV design whilst collecting her award for The Danish Girl in 2016.

“From extravagant ballgowns to little black dresses, wearing black is a fashion classic that has evidently stood the test of time. The study suggests that wearing a black Armani or Valentino dress is the perfect winning formula for hopeful nominees, increasing their likelihood of winning an Academy Award and offering a timeless and elegant look for the red carpet.”  

Similarly, the mint green and icy blue gowns worn by the 2024 awardees may signify that lighter hues and spring palettes could bring luck to future nominees—despite the study finding that 32% of the ‘Best Actress’ and ‘Best Supporting Actress’ category winners have dressed in black to accept their awards in history. Noteworthy examples include Cher’s iconic sheer 1988 Bob Mackie gown and Frances McDormand’s 2021 black Valentino dress.

The study also revealed that 13% of female winners in recorded history wore a variation of gold, making it the second luckiest color to wear to the Academy Awards. Success stories include Emma Stone, who took home her first ‘Best Actress’ award for La La Land in 2017 while dressed in a gold Givenchy Haute Couture design.

Gold is currently the luckiest color to wear to the Academy Awards in the 21st century, with 20% of leading female winners wearing gold, compared to 14% choosing black.  

Equally as lucky as gold, white is the joint second luckiest color to wear if a nominee hopes to win an Academy Award—13% of winners wear white to receive their coveted award. 

Notably, Audrey Hepburn famously referred to the white Givenchy gown she wore to collect her first ‘Best Actress’ award in 1954 as her “lucky dress.” Most recently, ‘Best Actress’ for 2023, Michelle Yeoh, wore a beautifully feathered, white Dior Haute Couture gown to last year’s ceremony. 

The fourth luckiest color to wear to the Oscars is blue, with 10% of all past winners wearing the color, and green ranks fifth, with 9%.