Cynthia Erivo's Stunning Style Transformation

With the release of the long-awaited movie-musical "Wicked," Cynthia Erivo has been dominating pop culture conversation alongside her co-star Ariana Grande. The London native has demonstrated her style skills with her wickedly green and gothically glam red carpet moments, which perfectly balance Grande's Glinda-coded press tour looks, but they only mark one era of her fashion journey. In truth, Erivo has had a stunning style transformation since debuting on Broadway in "The Color Purple," with the actor establishing her eclectic and show-stopping sense of style throughout the years and eventually landing on the list of the best dressed celebrities of 2024.

"I consider my style Afrofuturistic," Erivo told The New York Times Style Magazine in 2019. "I have teal green hair right now — you called it 'pistachio,' which I love — but it's still kinky, with my natural coils, and I feel like it's a way to expand expression. I'm lucky, because I have an amazing stylist [Jason Bolden], and we work together to create these moments that feel like they're pushing an aesthetic into the future. You always have the opportunity to create a moment, so I never waste it by dressing down."

Cynthia Erivo's early career saw the performer in several stage projects, including the West End production of "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" and a UK tour of "Sister Act." Still, her starring, award-winning role in the Broadway production of "The Color Purple" is largely regarded as her big break. While the London native hadn't yet established herself as the fashion risk-taker she's known as today, she was already becoming familiar with some of fashion's most notable names, an experience she discussed when hosting the CFDA Awards 2024.

"American fashion holds a special place in my heart," Erivo said. "When I first came to New York as a newbie to perform in this little musical ... I didn't have a stylist [and] no one knew who I was. Designers like Tom Brown and Daniel Rosebury and my date tonight Zac Posen and Tori were all so kind and welcoming" (per YouTube). In fact, Erivo was actually outfitted in a Zac Posen creation for the Broadway premiere of "The Color Purple" back in 2015. The white, corseted garment is far from the avant-garde pieces that Eviro has since sported, but the actor still rocked it with her signature confidence. She styled the knee-length dress with strappy white heels, a statement necklace, and daring teal lipstick.

Cynthia Erivo made her movie debut in 2018, appearing in the films "Widows" and "Bad Times at the El Royale." "I'm just trying to make sure that I do the right work, and just whatever comes from it comes from it," Erivo told Complex at the time. "I'm really, really excited about what's happening in this moment. I have to sort of have to remind myself to enjoy each moment as it happens because everything is new." Her transition from the stage to the big screen offered the singer even more red-carpet opportunities, with Erivo getting increasingly more experimental with her ensembles.

An example of this is the Mary Katrantzou dress that Erivo wore to the New York City screening of "Widows." The exaggerated trapeze dress featured a halter top neckline and a mish-mash print of modernist paintings. She styled the garment with a knitted, white headpiece, pointed-toed heels, and a fish-shaped earring. Notably, the Hollywood figure is pictured without an elaborate manicure, which would eventually become a major element of her style. While not quite as experimental or avant-garde as some of her future looks, this era of Erivo's fashion hints at what's to come.

The year 2019 marked some major milestones for Cynthia Erivo. Most notably, the Hollywood figure gave an Oscar-nominated performance in the biopic "Harriet," a film that took the story of abolitionist Harriet Tubman to the big screen for the first time. While the project was meaningful both professionally and personally for her, its award show season also saw Erivo establish herself as a true fashion icon. She began working with stylist Jason Bolden in October, with the Missouri-born creative director collaborating with Erivo for the premiere of "Harriet."

Erivo wore a sweeping, feathered ball gown to the event, with the Marc Jacobs piece featuring eye-catching shades of oranges and pinks in the shape of flowers. The British actor completed the look with pink eyeshadow, bold lashes, and a platinum dye job. The ensemble is indicative of the bold couture looks that Erivo has become known for, with Bolden speaking to her vibrant style and red-carpet presence in an interview with Vogue. "You have this one woman of color who is giving you what the fashion world and all these people would say is quintessential amazingness," he said. "Every time she's hitting the carpet [it's] custom, it's couture, it's new, it's fresh and pure red carpet energy."

While Cynthia Erivo is able to pull off bold prints and theatrical pieces, she maintains a far-reaching style range. In this way, the "Wicked" star sported several glamorous and elegant looks in 2021. The year also saw Erivo starring in the Aretha Franklin-centered mini-series "Genius: Aretha" and releasing the album "Ch. 1 vs. 1," projects that ultimately led to her being honored with the 2021 Music Award at Harper Bazaar's Women of the Year Awards.

Working still with her stylist Jason Bolden, Erivo wore a striking, floor-length gown from Armani Privé to the star-studded event. The black, velvet dress featured an off-the-shoulder neckline and was adorned with rows of Swarovski crystals. She styled the look with an assortment of jewelry, including a nose ring, and a Hollywood-glam-inspired makeup look. "I guess I would call it 'elegantly edgy' ... and, daring?" she told Harper's Bazaar of her style. "I sort of throw caution to the wind a lot. We have a lot of fun. We pick pieces that speak to us and sometimes they are really adventurous and sometimes they are extremely classic."

As mentioned, the year 2024 marked another huge project for Cynthia Erivo, with the movie star taking on the role of Elphaba in the Jon M. Chu-directed movie musical "Wicked." The British actor and her co-star Ariana Grande leaned into method dressing throughout the press tour, with each channeling their respective characters in their red carpet wardrobes. For Erivo, this meant everything from witchy black gowns to vibrant green fabrics, with the actor bringing her signature confidence to each look.

One of our favorite outfits comes from the LA movie premiere, with Erivo donning a lime green dress designed by Nicolas Ghesquière for Louis Vuitton. The vinyl gown includes a keyhole cutout under its V-shaped neckline and pairs with a massive boa-like shawl worn around the arms. For this look, the British star went all out with dark, bling-filled nails, which landed on our list of chicest celebrity manicures of 2024.

"I really wanted the pieces to be influenced by Elphaba and the costumes that she wears within the film," Erivo explained to Louis Vuitton. "I like dynamic style and dynamic fashion, and so I go for shape and volume and structure. Nicolas [Ghesquière] creations make me feel very special." With this massive style transformation in mind, we can't wait to see what Erivo does next.