Every May, the world stops paying attention to almost everything else and turns its eyes to the French Riviera. Cannes is officially a film festival, but what actually gets documented, dissected, and saved to mood boards is what happens on the red carpet before anyone even walks through the door. This year Cannes delivered a particularly strong lineup of looks that we think translate directly into bridal inspiration, covering everything from the dress to the beauty and hair. We went through the whole carpet and pulled what we think is worth your attention.
Photo: Getty, Shasy
Bella Hadid
Our list opens with Bella Hadid, and honestly, where else would it start. For the Garance premiere on May 17, she arrived in a custom Prada pale silver double satin gown. The silhouette was strapless, the neckline embellished with crystals, and a matching satin jacket draped deliberately low off the shoulders. The whole picture landed somewhere between old Hollywood and the quieter, more structured end of Y2K glamour, a retro column silhouette on delicate shine. For brides heading into a cooler season, the jacket detail is worth studying.
Hair stylist Jacob Schwartz pulled everything back into a sleek updo that kept the focus exactly where the dress needed it: on the shoulders, the collarbone, the neckline. Makeup artist Nadia Tayeh leaned into the era: warm bronzed contouring on the skin, silver shimmer on the eyes, and a precise waterline liner traced all the way around, a beauty signature straight from the beginning of the century. Jewelry by Chopard.
Photo: Valeriiarii, Rani Fawaz
For her third appearance on the 2026 Cannes staircase, Bella Hadid wore a custom Schiaparelli Haute Couture gown. Behind it: 22,160 hours of embroidery and the hands of 130 artisans. The look was a direct tribute to Jane Birkin, who famously took a Pucci dress, put it on backwards, and fastened the resulting neckline with a dark brooch, turning an instinctive decision into one of fashion history’s most referenced moments.
What makes this dress genuinely interesting is the tension it holds between two completely different worlds: boho and gothic, held together by a black velvet ribbon corset lacing down the back and a dramatic brooch at the front. Jacob Schwartz pulled the hair into a tight slick bun that kept every bit of attention on the dress. Makeup by Nadia Tayeh was the right call: clean skin, barely-there lips, minimal eye, nothing competing with thousand hours of handwork.
Photo: Daniele Venturelli, Samet Gorgoz Films
Romee Strijd
Brides have been quietly stepping away from white, and Romee Strijd’s two Cannes looks make the case for exactly how to do it delicately. The first is the powder blue off-shoulder gown by Anastasia Zadorina Couture she wore to the Karma premiere. The draped fabric and soft pleated train kept everything understated until the slit. The thigh-high cut running up the skirt was the one decision that shifted the entire register of the look, and it was exactly the right one.
The hair by Sasha Nesterchuk deserves its own moment. What reads at first glance as a sharp jaw-length bob is actually a faux bob: Strijd’s long blonde hair pinned and tucked away to create the illusion of a short cut. It is the kind of styling move that works especially well across a wedding weekend or multi-event celebration, where a bride might want to surprise her guests, and her partner, with a completely different version of herself from one evening to the next. The makeup by Kelly Mcclain was the definition of a gold standard bridal look: a warm bronzed base, a soft wash of brown on the eyes, and nude lips that kept the whole face clean and luminous.
Photo: Artyom Akopyan, Valeriiarii
The following evening at the El Ser Querido premiere, Strijd returned in an entirely different register. The gown by Caroline’s Couture was built on a sandy, skin-toned nude base that sat flush against her complexion, with white floral embroidery and crystal appliqués layered over the top, densest at the hem and growing sparser toward the neckline. For brides planning a beach wedding, a desert ceremony, or anything that lives in that warm sun-drenched space between summer and landscape, this style is the answer.
Hair by Keune Hair Cosmetics and stylist Luke Benson came down in deep luxurious waves that gave the look its warmth and movement. The makeup shifted into something more editorial: smokier eyes with real depth and dimension, fuller and glossier lips with more color and more presence. If the first look was about restraint, this one was about confidence, and both were completely right for what each dress asked of them.
Photo: Romee Strijd, Getty
Sara Sampaio
Sara Sampaio brought the most literally bridal look of the entire festival to the Fatherland premiere. The custom Miu Miu gown was ivory tulle with a structured corset bodice, featherlight ruffled texture at the neckline, and a full cathedral-volume skirt that moved the way only couture tulle moves. Degradé crystals were embroidered across the entire dress, catching light differently at every angle without ever tipping into excess. This is the dress that brides who have always known exactly what they want will recognise immediately.
Hair stylist Vasco Freitas kept everything sleek and straight with a center part, directing every bit of attention toward the architecture of the dress. Makeup by Daniel Kolaric was soft and luminous: glowing skin, nude lips, a barely-there eye. The whole beauty approach was deliberately quiet, which is exactly the right call when the dress is doing everything.
Photo: Guels Photos, Getty
The second look was a complete departure and easily the bolder of the two. The custom Waad Aloqaili Couture gown was covered in bugle beads that from a distance read as something close to crocodile skin, a dense textured surface that felt more like material than fabric. That quality made the contrast at the neckline and hem even more striking: large pearls clustered against what looked like scales, soft against hard, organic against structured. The sweetheart silhouette was bodycon from chest to ankle. One of the strongest references in the entire look was the jewelry: a rigid diamond collar necklace from Messika that sat tight and close against the throat, almost like a cuff for the neck. Shoes by René Caovilla.
Vasco Freitas pulled the hair into a tight sleek bun that kept the neckline completely unobstructed. Makeup by Daniel Kolaric matched the mood: the lips were deeper and more saturated than the first look, a plummy tone with real presence that gave the face its edge and pulled the whole look together.
Photo: Pietro Schiavetti
Barbara Palvin
Barbara Palvin’s first Cannes appearance this year was also the most talked-about pregnancy reveal of the festival. She walked the red carpet for the Histoires Parallèles premiere in a baby blue Miu Miu gown with delicate cap sleeves, an empire waist, and a feathered hem that gave the whole thing movement and softness.
For brides who are pregnant or simply want something that reads as romantic rather than bridal in the traditional sense, this silhouette is one of the most elegant solutions on record. Chandelier diamond earrings were the only jewelry, and they were exactly enough. Hair by Owen Gould fell in soft ethereal waves, and makeup by Tobi Henney kept everything luminous and natural: glowing skin, soft contour, nothing competing with the moment itself.
Photo: Tobi Henney, Barbara Palvin
Two days later at the Paper Tiger premiere on May 16, Palvin returned in an entirely different register. The Ella Mae SS26 gown was cream and ivory, off-shoulder, with flowing draped panels, soft pleating, lace-trimmed details, and a dark contrasting ribbon placed just below the bust that anchored the whole silhouette. From a distance it read as Grecian, Up close it was closer to something a romantic heroine might wear in the final act of a film set somewhere warm and ancient.
The open shoulders, the loose fabric moving around the bump, the dark ribbon as the only point of contrast: every detail felt deliberate and worked. Owen Gould let the hair down in long loose waves that moved with the dress and gave the look its warmth. Makeup by Tobi Henney stayed in the same soft, skin-forward territory as the first night, consistent and quietly confident across both appearances.
Photo: Barbara Palvin
Irina Shayk
Irina Shayk spent exactly six hours at Cannes this year. The dress was a champagne silk slip from The Row: two spaghetti straps, a plunging V-neckline, an impeccably cut column silhouette. Then the necklace: a diamond choker from Leo Pizzo with a large pear-shaped blue gemstone at the center that was bold, heavy, and completely unapologetic.
The genius of the look was in how those two things coexisted. The jewelry had all the drama, and the dress had all the ease, and together they created a balance that felt genuinely chic. For brides who love a statement piece but are afraid of tipping into too much, this is the reference. Hair was sleek, straight, and side-parted. Makeup was as fresh, glowing and natural as the dress. She simply looked radiant, and that was entirely the point.
Photo: Artyom Akopyan, Getty
Ester Expósito
Ester Expósito, best known internationally for Elite, walked the red carpet for The Man I Love premiere in a Giorgio Armani Privé pearl-embellished mermaid gown that was one of the most technically interesting dresses of the entire festival. The base of the dress was a shiny satin underskirt in a warm golden champagne tone that caught the light from underneath all the pearl and crystal embellishment layered on top, creating a luminous depth that shifted with every step.
The golden undertone of the fabric worked especially well against her blonde hair, adding warmth and saturation to the entire look. The necklace deserves its own mention: a rigid architectural choker from Messika that sat tight and close against the throat, the same kind of structured collar we saw on Sara Sampaio earlier. The makeup kept everything airy and light: minimal eye, no heavy lashes, no liner, just clean glowing skin and a softness that gave the face room to breathe.
Photo: Jocelyn Hamel, Getty
Nima Benati
Nima Benati is an Italian fashion photographer, Forbes 30 Under 30, and one of the most followed names in the industry. At Cannes this year she stepped in front of the camera herself, and the result was worth the switch. The gown she wore was by Wona Concept. A pale blush mermaid gown with a sweetheart neckline framed by ruffled petals of fabric that folded softly around the bust like the layers of a flower.
The effect was somewhere between couture and something from a fairy tale. If Tinker Bell ever walked a red carpet, she would have worn something close to this. Hair by Elizabett Fogel was swept up into a polished updo that kept the petal neckline completely unobstructed and gave the look its elegance. Makeup by Anna was warm and sculpted: defined brows, contoured skin, and a full lip that gave the face the presence it needed to hold its own against the gown.
Photo: Getty, Davide Frandi
Nada Kamani
Nada Kamani is a British-Saudi model. Two years ago in a ceremony on the French Riviera she married PrettyLittleThing founder, Umar Kamani, that became one of the most talked-about weddings of that season. She has been a fixture at Cannes ever since, and this year she arrived with two looks that felt considered and precise in equal measure. The first was an Elie Saab strapless column gown covered in a grid of pearl and sequin embroidery with floral crystal clusters across the fabric: structured, clean, and restrained.
It also tapped into what was arguably the strongest jewelry theme of Cannes 2026 as a whole. Pearl had a genuine moment this year, not as a nostalgic reference but as something current and fully alive, and this dress was one of the best examples. The necklace from Chaumet, whose Arabia chapter Nada represents as an ambassador, ran three horizontal diamond lines with pearl drops falling from the lowest strand, adding an art deco layering to the already pearl-forward look.
Photo: Nada Kamani
The second look was a nod to Old Hollywood in the most understated way possible. A white heavy satin halter gown with a dramatically plunging V-neckline, gathered softly at the waist and falling into a clean column to the floor. A sapphire and diamond necklace from Chaumet in deep blue sat at the throat as the only point of color in an otherwise all-white picture.
Glam by Dessange Paris. The beauty matched the mood: glowing skin, a soft eye, and hair worn long and straight. Cool, precise, and completely self-assured, which is exactly the energy this kind of dress requires to carry.
Photo: Nada Kamani
Ariadna Gutierrez
Colombian model and actress Ariadna Gutierrez is one of those Cannes regulars who gets better at it every year. This was her fifth time at the festival, and she marked it at the Karma premiere in a white sculptural gown by Wona Concept. The strapless bodice was constructed with rigid origami-like folds that created volume and structure at the front, before opening into a clean mermaid silhouette with a dramatic train and a thigh-high slit.
Jewelry by Chopard: a one-of-a-kind emerald and diamond choker added a bold hit of green against all that white. Hair by Florian Malinge was worn in loose voluminous waves swept to one side, giving the look its warmth and movement. Makeup by Ismael Blanco leaned into a full, sensual finish: bronzed skin, defined eyes, and a fuller lip.
Photo: Ariadna Gutierrez
Léanne Ansar
Leanne Ansar is a French-American model and content creator known across social media for one thing above all else: her natural curls. For her very first Cannes red carpet appearance, she wore a white off-shoulder ball gown by Amuse Moi with a ruffled tiered skirt that swept the carpet and a draped bodice that softened the structured silhouette into something genuinely romantic. The dress was deeply bridal in the best possible sense: full, white, and completely joyful.
And those curls, worn loose and cascading over the bare shoulder, made the whole look feel alive in a way that a sleek blowout never could have. Hair by Antoine Wauquier. Makeup by Aurore using Dior Beauty was kept soft and glowing, a barely-there finish that let the curls and the dress carry the moment without competition.
Photo: Léanne Ansar
