The Crown's Elizabeth Debicki Channels Princess Diana's Revenge Dress

Like Princess Diana before her, Elizabeth Debicki stunned at The Crown's London premiere. And no detail went unnoticed, as the actress honored the late royal in more ways than one.

By Alyssa Morin Nov 09, 2022 6:58 PMTags
Watch: Elizabeth Debicki Portrays Princess Diana With Sons in The Crown

Elizabeth Debicki's latest look was fit for a princess.

The Crown star, who will step into Princess Diana's shoes for the fifth season Netflix series, channeled the late royal at the show's London premiere on Nov. 8. For the special occasion, Elizabeth graced the red carpet in a regal black Dior dress.

And while the silk crepe strapless design may have seemed simple with its sleek structure, its crisscrossed backside, floor-length neck collar and ribbed bustier made an undeniable impact. 

What's more? Elizabeth's look was riddled with meaning and paid homage to Princess Diana in more ways than one.

Between the sexy cleavage-baring neckline and striking black shade of the dress, the ensemble was reminiscent of the late royal's revenge dress moment in 1994.

While the LBD was considered risqué for the time, Princess Diana made jaws drop with a black Christina Stambolian creation. She wore the sizzling piece at a Vanity Fair fundraiser, which also happened to be the same night King Charles III (then a prince) had his tell-all interview about their broken marriage and his affairs.

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Elizabeth's Dior design, which came fresh off the haute couture spring 2022 runway, also looked like a modern-day version of the pale blue Catherine Walker gown Princess Diana donned at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival.

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In addition, Elizabeth's choice of wearing black represented the mark of a new royal era, when Princess Diana made it acceptable to dress in black for various occasions. Before, it had only been reserved for a period of mourning. 

Princess Diana symbolism aside, Vogue revealed just how much thought went into making the Dior creation. For one, it took two members of the French house's atelier an estimated 300 hours to craft the Tenent star's little black dress.

Mike Marsland/WireImage

When you look back at the history of Princess Diana's fashion influence, it's also fitting that Elizabeth enlisted the help of Dior. After all, they named its iconic Lady Dior handbag after the princess in 1996. And she frequently wore jewelry and clothes from the luxury label.

Tim Graham/Getty Images

All episodes of The Crown's fifth season are available to stream on Netflix.

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