Golden Globes: A Run on Black Gowns and #MeToo on the red carpet in Hollywood

Industry insiders are grappling with how to do the red carpet during the #MeToo movement.

Following the cultural awakening in Hollywood over sexual harassment and gender inequality, industry insiders are trying to figure out how best to acknowledge the #MeToo movement during awards season in 2018.

At the Golden Globes on Jan. 7, actresses, including nominees and presenters, are planning to wear black to protest gender inequality and to acknowledge the flood of sexual abuse allegations that have rocked Hollywood beginning with Harvey Weinstein. This follows on the heels of the announcement that all the presenters at the Jan. 21 Screen Actors Guild Awards will be female.

In a recent meeting at CAA about how to achieve gender equality in the industry (the agency is also taking the 50/50 by 2020 pledge), there was talk of a new protocol for the red carpet, one of the biggest platforms for women in Hollywood. "There was a discussion of crafting some sort of talking points." 

When it comes to improving the quality of dialogue on the red carpet beyond just "What are you wearing?" documentary filmmaker Jennifer Siebel Newsom, founder and CEO of The Representation Project, thinks her 2014 campaign urging red carpet reporters to #AskHerMore is more relevant now than ever.

"AskHerMore is fundamentally about treating women as full human beings rather than objects. And I think #MeToo is about the same thing," she says. "I hope red carpet interviewers ask about the power the media has to make a difference in the world, how those involved in creating it can set a better example and the importance of broadening who gets to have a say in creating that media. For instance, the Golden Globes nominated five white men in the director category. White men are not the only people making good films. They are just the ones being recognized. Let's talk about that on the red carpet."

But not at the expense of talking about gorgeous gowns, Newsom adds. "The campaign is #AskHerMore, not #DontAskHer. Fashion does not diminish women; our culture diminishes women. But we cannot focus solely on fashion and these women's appearances over everything else. We need a balance."

The red carpet blackout is still on track — for women and men.

What to wear to the Golden Globes? All black? "Me Too" buttons? Marchesa?

Despite the wardrobe war of words that erupted over the plan for actresses to dress in all-black at the Golden Globes to protest gender inequality in Hollywood, the red carpet blackout for Jan. 7 is still on track.

Representatives from L.A.'s fashion and accessory showrooms in the business of dressing celebrities are reporting a run on all-black clothing, from gowns to cocktail dresses to men's suits. "Every request we've received thus far has been for black," reports one publicist, noting that "it's been quite a shuffle for fashion agencies."

"We are working hard to get in more all-black options to support those who are adhering to the Golden Globes consensus," and that includes menswear, said another rep, noting that Hollywood's peacocks are turning it down a notch. "It's going to be an inevitable thing out of solidarity. I think the majority of men are going go safe in a black suit with a white shirt so no one's going to look the odd man out," says New York-based stylist Michael Fisher, who is dressing nominees Hugh Jackman (The Greatest Showman) and Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Claire Foy at the Emmy Awards on Sept. 17.

Although many A-list actresses team up with fashion houses months before the Golden Globes on one-of-a-kind, custom-made gowns — in 2017, Ruth Negga wore a custom silver Louis Vuitton, and Priyanka Chopra a custom Ralph Lauren hand-embroidered look that took 1,800 hours to make — even those special pieces are being ditched.

"We had a few custom pieces in the works that we've had to shift to the SAG Awards or Critic's Choice Awards," says a fashion publicist, adding that she expects accessories to play a more prominent role against the sea of black clothing, including "big and bold jewelry pieces and perhaps some custom clutches."

Ruth Negga wearing custom Louis Vuitton at the 2017 Golden Globes.

The fashion frenzy started last week when reports surfaced about the planned protest, an idea that sources say originated with the prominently female Golden Globes nominated cast of Big Little Lies (Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern and Shailene Woodley) as a way to acknowledge the cultural awakening that began in Hollywood in October with sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein and has now touched nearly every other industry.

Almost immediately, a black-lash began: Hollywood Foreign Press Association member Jenny Cooney wondered on social media, "Why should women not stand proud and in living color to show we will not be subdued and held down?" Two days later, Rose McGowan, one of the most prominent voices in the #MeToo movement, posted a since-deleted Tweet criticizing women for speaking out with fashion instead of taking a moral stand. "Actresses, like Meryl Streep, who happily worked for The Pig Monster, are wearing black @GoldenGlobes in a silent protest. YOUR SILENCE is THE problem. You'll accept a fake award breathlessly & affect no real change. I despise your hypocrisy. Maybe you should all wear Marchesa," McGowan wrote, referring to the fashion label co-designed by Weinstein's estranged wife, Georgina Chapman, which was once a red carpet staple thanks in part to Weinstein's powers of persuasion.

Firing back with her own statement, The Post's Streep — who once referred to Weinstein as "God" in an acceptance speech and previously worked with him on August: Osage County and The Iron Lady — said she was "appalled" by his alleged misconduct and also added that "not everybody knew" about it. (An anonymous street artist who has plastered "She Knew" posters around Los Angeles picturing Streep arm-in-arm with Weinstein seems to think otherwise.)

Amber Tamblyn also weighed in on the great dressing debate, posting: "Our movement is big. And a black dress is just the beginning of the darkness that will be drained from every industry across the country by the time we're done. That's a promise."

Still, most image makers, not wanting to spoil the impact of whatever happens on the red carpet, are keeping clients' Golden Globes dressing plans close to the vest. Stylist Karla Welch, who works with The Handmaid's Tale's Elisabeth Moss says, "I support all women coming together to collectively make a statement in whatever way they choose."

Vincent Boucher contributed to this report.