The Chinese actress graced the festival’s red carpet for the first time since 2018
Fan Bingbing knows how to make an entrance. When the Chinese actress arrived at the opening ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival 2023 this week, she was the picture of poise with her chignon hairstyle, her signature red lip and her elaborate ballgown. It was with all this finery that Fan marked her grand return to the famed festival on the French Riviera.
Fan last attended the Cannes Film Festival in 2018, a month before she disappeared altogether from the public eye as news of her tax scandal came to light in China. Up until then, she had been attending the prestigious event for almost every other year from 2010—sometimes as a jury member, sometimes as a star of film that was being screened, and always as red carpet royalty.
This year, as usual, Fan dressed to impress. She attended the premiere of Jeanne du Barry in a breathtaking strapless white gown, adorned with vibrant embroidery that depicted a jungle scene with tigers along the voluminous skirt. Fan wore leaves in her hair to complement her nature-inspired ensemble, as well as a pair of dangling earrings set with sizeable emeralds that only brought out the green details of her gown.
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Fan’s dramatic look is the work of Chinese designer Christopher Bu, who, as her former stylist, had also created the red gown that she wore to the Cannes Film Festival in 2011. That dress, which was embroidered with white cranes, remains one of Fan’s most memorable red carpet looks.
Fan’s tiger dress was only one of two standout outfits that she wore on the opening night of the Cannes Film Festival 2023. (By the actress’s standards, though, wearing two looks is not an extravagance. When she attended the Oscars this year, she had four outfit changes.) Her second look was a black velvet gown from Russian fashion label Yanina Couture. The off-shoulder dress featured a blooming yellow flower made from sequins, and was paired with black leather gloves trimmed with feathers.
