Lili Reinhart is currently promoting The Love Hypothesis, but someone might want to check whether she accidentally wandered onto the set of Miss Congeniality instead.
The actress reportedly stepped out in Midtown Manhattan on 18 September wearing a custom lilac Hervé Léger mini dress by Michelle Ochs, complete with a halter neckline, matching strappy heels, and brown-tinted sunglasses. If the outfit is giving you a sudden urge to play 'Mustang Sally,' congratulations. You remember your Y2K rom-com history quite well.
Reinhart and stylist Ib Abdel Nasser weren't being subtle about the reference either. The look recreated Sandra Bullock's famous lavender Hervé Léger moment as Gracie Hart in the 2000 comedy Miss Congeniality. Now that's a style recreation worthy of a crown.
From One Hart to Another: Gracie Hart to Lili Reinhart
Twenty-six years ago, Bullock's FBI agent emerged from an airport hangar after undergoing one of cinema's most memorable makeovers. Gone was the dishevelled Gracie that audiences met earlier in the film. In her place came a muse with a slow-motion walk that had the whole world wondering where to buy that dress. Don't be fooled though. She may have been in a dress and been possibly highly-flammable due to all that hair gel, but Gracie Hart was still armed. Do not mess with her.
Reinhart's version keeps the recognisable colour and body-hugging silhouette but brings the look into 2026. Her micro mini is shorter, the halter straps are slimmer, and oval sunglasses give the outfit another distinctly Y2K touch.
Even Bullock has been reminiscing about the original dress lately. During an appearance on Kylie Kelce's 'Not Gonna Lie' podcast, the actress jokingly described it as 'basically a walking Spanx' and revealed that achieving Gracie's famous silhouette involved 2 pairs of Spanx and 6 'chicken cutlets.'
As it seems, movie magic sometimes requires structural engineering, even if it does have to come from the produce department at the supermarket.
Press Tour Is Becoming a Rom-Com Closet
This isn't Lili Reinhart's first trip into someone else's fictional wardrobe, but it's certainly one that packs the biggest punch. That is, if you take into account how hard Gracie Hart could actually throw an uppercut punch.
Her The Love Hypothesis press tour has doubled as a rom-com fashion marathon, with Reinhart and Abdel Nasser revisiting looks associated with Kate Hudson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Jennifer Garner in 13 Going on 30, Drew Barrymore in Ever After, and Keira Knightley in Atonement.
The nostalgia translated into fashion makes perfect sense for a movie arriving with romance already written into its DNA. The Love Hypothesis, based on Ali Hazelwood's bestselling novel, premieres on Prime Video on 23 September.
Lili Reinhart's latest homage to a legendary rom-com heroine might be particularly difficult to beat. Gracie Hart may have competed for Miss United States and won the title of Miss Congeniality, but 26 years later, her lavender dress is in the running for best-dressed.
Spoiler alert: judging by Reinhart's remake, this crown absolutely refuses to retire.
