Dressing to Im(press)
Throughout the press tour for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, the cast frequently adorned garments that referenced the original film series, setting a new precedent for how fashion worn off-screen can be just as impactful as what’s worn on-screen.
Rachel Zegler and Hunter Schafer at the Los Angeles premiere of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, wearing an embellished taupe gown with a matching shawl from Elie Saab’s Fall 2023 collection (left), and a pewter beaded cutout gown by Alexander McQueen (right).
Because of the immense cultural impact that The Hunger Games trilogy has had on the mediascape paired with its cult following of book readers and film geeks, there was no room for error when it came to the release of the series’ prequel film, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The same goes for the fashion associated with the film outside of what is featured on screen, the press and event looks worn by the cast prior to the film’s release. That being said, the celebrity stylists backing the talent starring in this film did right by the legacy that comes with the franchise and created a blueprint for future fashion professionals to follow in regards to press tour fashion by nodding to iconic garments featured in the previous films.
Hunter Schafer, who played Tigris Snow in the film, was a fashion killer at the carpets and events leading up to the film's release in November 2023 thanks to her stylist, Dara Allen. For the film’s final premiere in New York City, Dara put Hunter in a piece from Marni’s spring 2024 collection, a dress adorned in upcycled, metal flowers to create a captivating sculptural piece. In an interview with Vogue, Dara said that “[He and Schafer] loved winking towards Effie Trinket and the iconic look of the Capitol in the original movies for the final premiere.” The look was clearly a reference to a look worn by Effie Trinket, played by Elizabeth Banks, during the reaping scene in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. The primary difference between the two looks was that Effie’s is a sculptural piece made up of orange butterflies, and Hunter’s is covered by pink flowers. For diehard fans of the movie series, this reference was an easy catch and only made for a more exciting lead up to the highly anticipated film. Celebrity stylists across the board should take note that playing into the fans’ excitement surrounding their clients upcoming projects through referential fashion brings an excess of support for both the project and the client.
Rachel Zegler, the star of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbird and Snakes in the role of Lucy Gray Baird, partnered with celebrity stylist, Sarah Slutsky Tooley, to truly show the masses how press tour fashion is done. For the European premiere of the film, Rachel Zegler sported a black mermaid gown by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen with red detailing at the bottom of the dress meant to emulate the petals of an orchid. Although the bottom of the dress was patterned with flower petals, fans quickly understood that it was a reference to the “girl on fire” dress worn by Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, during her interview with Caesar Flickerman in the first movie. Playing so cleverly on an iconic moment from the original film was a stellar choice by Tooley as it placed Zegler perfectly in Jennifer Lawrence’s place as the ingenue of The Hunger Games series.
By using references from the source material for the press tour fashions of Hunter Schafer and Rachel Zegler, celebrity stylists Dara Allen and Sarah Slutsky Tooley created a crash course on how to dress talent during press week in an industry constantly capitalizing on sequels and reboots. Harkening back to looks featured in The Hunger Games trilogy films brought fans of the series into the fantasy by allowing them to decipher the references themselves and envision the new talent as a part of the fictional world created by Suzanne Collins. Commercials and brand collaborations are a consistent way to get media consumers excited for an upcoming project, but they can be repetitive. Utilizing clever referencing to source material when styling talent for a press tour creates a space for fans and celebrities alike to publicly bond over their love for a franchise, thus bringing an excess of eyes to an already anticipated project.
