This is The Close-Up, where the biggest names in entertainment explain the story behind their latest personal style statement.
The 2025 Emmys red carpet could have felt like déjà vu for Shrinking star Jessica Williams. This year, like last year, she was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. For both carpets, she and stylist Sarah Slutsky turned to Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte for a gown fitting the occasion. Yet the overall aura of Williams's look outside the Peacock Theater on September 14 felt like a 180-degree shift; a total vibe reset. This, Williams tells me in an email the morning after the awards ceremony, was intentional.
"The first time I was nominated was mind blowing and shocking. It was the first season of Shrinking so I had no idea how it would be received," she recalls. "This second time around, not only am I nominated, but so is our whole show. And that brings me so much joy. I feel lighter and excited. I wanted that to reflect this time around."
The dress that best reflects Williams's mindset now was a blush pink, off-the-shoulder gown fit for a mythical goddess. Intricate swathes of fabric criss-crossed over the actress's torso and down into a flowing skirt. A train cascaded from over her arms and onto the floor like a peony waterfall. Where her 2024 Emmys gown was regal and stately in its structure—a strapless black number with a flash of white at the sculpturally rounded skirt—her 2025 dress was purposefully, powerfully soft.
Williams sums up her dress in two words: "ethereal and simple." At this year's Emmys, "I just wanted to feel like my look was easy but somewhat glamorous," she says. She'd surprised herself in 2024. In 2025, she was dressing to show up like someone who knew she'd be on the nominees list.
On Emmys morning, bringing the full look together began with her "gorgeous and glowy" makeup by Armani Beauty. "I wanted Jessica to feel glowing and soft, with an elegance that enhances her natural beauty," makeup artist Cherish Brooke Hill says. Williams describes the look—starting with Armani Beauty Skin Tint and layering up with the label's Luminous Silk Foundation and Luminous Silk Concealer—as "skin forward and a bit ethereal."
Her lit-from-within glow continued with coordinating eye and lip products: "For my lip I used the gorgeous Lip Power in 503 and for light shimmer on my eye we used the Eye Tint in 44S," Williams says.
Hair stylist SherriAnn Cole then gathered Williams's braids into a low bun, with wisps of fabric from her gown tied into her up-do. "This delicate braided style was directly inspired by the gathered draping of her dress, creating harmony between her hairstyle and the elegance of her look on the carpet," Cole says.
Later in the night, Williams would end up changing out of her fairytale Rodarte gown into a mint green sequin dress by Gasanova. "It’s stunning, has gentle shine, and is so comfortable that I can move and dance—which is the most important part of an after-party look for me," she says.
While she'd eventually switch up her palette, the end result is the same. From gown to gown and carpet to carpet, Jessica Williams says she just wants to "feel something" through fashion. "I want to have fun and reflect a mood. No matter what it is." This year, the tone she's striking is palpable.
Photographer Ibra Ake | Stylist Sarah Slutsky | Makeup Artist Cherish Brooke Hill | Hair Stylist SherriAnne Cole
