Actor Awards 2026 Embraces 1920s-30s Glamour With Statement Jewelry

Diamonds and bespoke high jewelry set the tone at the Actor Awards’ first-ever Elle-curated red-carpet dress code, "Reimagining Hollywood Glamour From the ’20s and ’30s," which transformed the March 1 show into a study in archival motifs and maximal sparkle. JCK observed that "Actors dove deep into archival clothing and jewelry vaults to - as the theme requested - reimagine Hollywood glamour from the 1920s and 1930s," and the evening’s roster answered with both vintage references and newly commissioned suites.

Kristen Bell, who hosted the show, leaned into the theme in Messika Haute Joaillerie, wearing the Night Owl collar and pendant earrings with a Messika by Kate Moss Exotic Charm ring while dressed in a Georges Hobeika Spring/Summer 2026 Couture gown. JCK noted Bell "hosted the show with her usual quirky humor and charm," and her Messika pieces anchored the ceremony’s gilded sensibility without overwhelming the silhouette.

The evening’s most lavish bespoke commission arrived on Kate Hudson: a Desert Diamonds suite by Emily P. Wheeler made exclusively for her, comprising drop earrings, a wraparound necklace, and an array of statement rings that together totaled nearly 80 carats of diamonds. Town & Country and gallery captions captured Hudson in custom Valentino, the diamonds playing lead against a streamlined gown.

Sofia Carson delivered one of the night’s more conceptually driven choices in Chopard’s Animal World ouroboros earrings. Whoworewhat described the 18k rose gold pieces as "coiled in 133 carats of brown diamonds with a wink of onyx," while JCK detailed the ouroboros motif as a serpent eating its tail, a symbol of eternity and renewal that suited the show’s 1920s-1930s revival.

Sarah Paulson favored Boucheron’s Vendôme Liseré set in white gold with black enamel, wearing pendant earrings each set with a 3 ct. emerald-cut diamond plus round diamonds, and a ring centered with a 4.13 ct. emerald-cut diamond paved with round stones. Those measured, architectural pieces contrasted with the free-flowing ropes and tassels seen elsewhere on the carpet.

Men’s jewelry largely remained restrained, though Connor Storrie bucked the minimalism in a full suite of Tiffany & Co. pieces; JCK singled him out, writing that "Men’s jewelry at the Actor Awards was more understated, with a few bare lapels that made us weep and wonder where Colman Domingo was. But in true Heated Rivalry fashion, star Storrie showed up and showed out with his full suite of Tiffany & Co. jewelry. Our favorite piece was the Jean Schlumberger by Tiffany Stitches ring in gold and platinum with diamonds."

Other strong statements included Viola Davis in Pasquale Bruni, wearing a floral diamond necklace finished with an emerald-green pear pendant and matching earrings as she appeared on the carpet while nominated for her role in Air; Sheryl Lee Ralph in De Beers "from ears to wrist," a look that WhoWoreWhat praised—"Sheryl Lee Ralph didn’t just follow the ’20s dress code, she wrote the syllabus." Ali Larter charted an edgier course in Repossi, stacking a Berbere necklace encrusted with 2,000 diamonds totaling 40 carats alongside a Blast bracelet, while Alexandra Metz riffed on Hollywood with LAGOS 18K Caviar Gold pieces and a gilt-tassel rope repurposed as a headpiece.

The Actor Awards’ curatorial leap into a themed dress code turned the red carpet into a conversation between archival motifs and contemporary high jewelry commissions. For collectors and connoisseurs the night offered clear numeric markers to watch: Hudson’s nearly 80 carats, Carson’s 133-carat brown diamond statement, Ali Larter’s 2,000-diamond Berbere at 40 carats, and Sarah Paulson’s 3 ct. and 4.13 ct. emerald-cut center stones — proof that when Hollywood asks for the ’20s and ’30s, jewelers answer with scale, story, and technical precision.