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*Thandie Newton used her high-profile appearance at the Cannes Film Festival, and her Vivienne Westwood dress, to honor every black Star Wars character in the franchise’s history.
As the “Solo: A Star Wars Story” actress walked the red carpet on Tuesday for the film’s premiere, so did John Boyega’s Finn, Samuel L. Jackson’s Mace Windu, Billy Dee Williams’ Lando Calrissian, Forest Whitaker’s Saw Gerrera and Hugh Quarshie’s Captain Panaka – all printed on the gown.
Although Lupita Nyong’o had a role in the previous two sequels, Newton is the first black actress to play a starring role in the franchise.
Thandie’s stylist Erin Walsh explained how the gown came about in a post on Instagram, revealing the 45-year-old wanted to celebrate the diversity of the sci-fi franchise and her landmark casting in the new film.
“For tonight’s #StarWars premiere (at Cannes), Thandie had the brilliant idea to make a dress covered in a print with photos of iconic black @starwars characters!” the fashion professional gushed on the picture-sharing app in a caption attached to a sketch of the dress. “She wanted to celebrate her role in the iconic history of the franchise!! She is the first black woman onscreen in a @starwars movie with a leading role.”
The images used for the dress came directly from fashion photographer Christian Hogstedt’s pics of Newton’s own personal collection of black Star Wars action figures.
In addition to being woke, the frock is eco-friendly as well. It follows the Eco-Age Green Carpet Challenge and was hand-crafted in Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified champagne gold ‘peau de soie’ from Taroni, a leading Italian silk producer.
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