2026 Pre-BAFTA Party Shoes: 5 Best Celebrity Footwear Looks from Chanel to Louboutin

Ahead of the 79th British Academy Film Awards, the Charles Finch & Chanel pre-BAFTA party brought actors and filmmakers to 5 Hertford Street in London on February 21, 2026. Chanel naturally had a strong presence, but the most interesting looks showed how differently classic evening shoes can work—from two-tone pumps and satin slingbacks to glossy Cuban-heel boots and barely-there strappy sandals.

Kirsten Dunst paired Chanel’s openwork knit with black-and-red two-tone pumps, while Lily Allen leaned into the house’s tweed tradition with black satin slingbacks. Kate Hudson broke from the Chanel-heavy lineup in Ralph Lauren, Gwendoline Christie grounded her tailoring with squared-toe Cuban-heel boots, and Marisa Abela finished her black dress with strappy Christian Louboutin Tangueva sandals.

The footwear is especially worth a closer look. Dunst’s pumps revisit Chanel’s enduring two-tone vocabulary with an unexpected red accent; Allen’s slingbacks reinforce the retro mood of her skirt suit; Christie uses a sturdier boot to balance oversized tailoring; and Abela’s slim, intersecting straps add definition without interrupting her monochromatic look.

Kirsten Dunst, Lily Allen, Kate Hudson, Gwendoline Christie, and Marisa Abela showcase five different approaches to pre-BAFTA dressing, with footwear ranging from Chanel pumps and slingbacks to Cuban-heel boots and Christian Louboutin sandals, at the Charles Finch & Chanel party in London on February 21, 2026 (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Kirsten Dunst Pairs Chanel Openwork Knit With Two-Tone Red-Trim Pumps

Kirsten Dunst may have missed a nomination for Roofman, but her pre-BAFTA look offered a clear example of how Chanel can update its familiar black evening palette through texture and footwear.

She wore a delicate black Chanel dress from the Pre-Fall 2026 collection, with an openwork knit pattern that gave the otherwise simple silhouette considerably more dimension. Crystal detailing along the high round neckline and flouncy ankle-length hem added restrained sparkle without overwhelming the texture of the dress.

Kirsten Dunst pairs a Chanel Pre-Fall 2026 openwork knit dress with two-tone pumps, using red accents at her shoes and lipstick to break up the predominantly black look (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Chanel’s Two-Tone Shoe Gets a Red-Trimmed Update

Dunst kept her accessories minimal with diamond earrings, leaving the dress texture and shoes to do most of the work.

Her Chanel pumps from the Spring 2026 collection featured glossy black toe caps framed in red at the vamps, with matching red slingback straps and high heels. The flashes of red also picked up her lipstick, creating a small but noticeable color connection from head to toe.

The design belongs to a much longer Chanel footwear story. Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel introduced her famous beige-and-black two-tone shoe with shoemaker Massaro in 1957, using a neutral upper to visually extend the leg and a contrasting dark toe to make the foot appear shorter. Dunst’s black-and-red pair changes the palette, but the contrast principle remains recognizable. Our look at Chanel’s two-tone slingback history and its modern celebrity interpretations shows how extensively the house has reworked that original formula.

A closer look at Kirsten Dunst’s Chanel Spring 2026 pumps, combining glossy black toes with red-trimmed vamps and red slingback straps beneath the embellished hem of her openwork dress (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Dunst, who stands about 5’5½” and wears a US shoe size 8.5, regularly experiments with distinctive designer footwear rather than relying on extreme heel height. At Valentino’s Spring 2026 couture show, for example, she wore crystal-snake-embellished mules while Lily Allen chose architectural PVC-paneled pumps—a useful contrast to the more restrained Chanel shoes both women wore here. See Kirsten Dunst and Lily Allen’s Valentino front-row shoes for the full looks.

Lily Allen Revisits Chanel Tweed With Black Satin Slingback Pumps

Lily Allen brought one of the evening’s strongest doses of color in a Chanel Spring 2026 skirt suit mixing yellow, orange, red, and black.

Her plaid jacket featured lightly frayed trims that referenced Chanel’s familiar tweed vocabulary without looking overly formal. Layering it over a fitted black turtleneck gave the busy pattern a quieter base, while the red patterned skirt continued the warm palette below the waist.

Lily Allen layers a black turtleneck beneath her colorful Chanel Spring 2026 jacket and patterned skirt, balancing the house’s tweed-inspired textures with a streamlined black base (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Black Satin Slingbacks Reinforce the Retro Styling

Allen continued the vintage-leaning mood with her hair swept into a high bun and blunt fringe. Her accessories included a Chanel Preppy Coco bag, gold earrings, rings and bracelets, a Tiffany & Co. Lock bangle with diamonds, and a Chanel Première Galon watch.

Sheer black tights created a continuous dark line into her black satin Chanel Pre-Fall 2026 slingback pumps. The pointed shoes featured squared vamps, cap toes, side cutouts, slingback straps, and high heels.

The silhouette also connects Allen’s look to one of fashion’s most enduring shoe categories. Our evergreen guide to 20 types of women’s shoes explains the defining slingback strap and highlights Chanel’s two-tone versions as the style’s best-known examples.

Lily Allen’s black satin Chanel Pre-Fall 2026 slingback pumps feature pointed cap toes, squared vamps and side cutouts, while sheer tights reinforce the retro mood of her skirt suit (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

At 5’2″, Allen is considerably more petite than several of the women featured here, but the high heel is only part of the effect. The pointed toe, dark tights, and uninterrupted black palette around the foot help keep the colorful skirt suit visually balanced rather than making the shoes another competing statement.

Kate Hudson Contrasts Ralph Lauren Leather With a Flowing Pleated Skirt

BAFTA Best Actress in a Leading Role nominee Kate Hudson took a different route from the Chanel-heavy guest list, choosing a black-and-white Ralph Lauren ensemble.

Her $2,890 “Harling” bustier was made in Italy from nappa lambskin and constructed with princess seams and internal boning. A sharp V-shaped neckline and diagonal front seam emphasized its structured shape.

The Song Sung Blue actress contrasted the fitted leather with a flowing white pleated skirt from Ralph Lauren’s Spring 2026 collection. The difference between the rigid-looking bodice and soft pleating gave the simple black-and-white palette much of its visual interest.

Kate Hudson joins Danny Fujikawa in a black Ralph Lauren Harling leather bustier and flowing white pleated skirt, contrasting a structured bodice with the softer movement of the floor-length skirt (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Hudson skipped a necklace, leaving the angular neckline unobstructed, and instead wore dangling diamond earrings with her blonde hair swept to one side.

Her shoes are concealed beneath the floor-length skirt, so the photographs don’t support identifying the pair. That’s notable in a shoe-focused article: unlike the other four looks, Hudson’s footwear can’t be reliably assessed from these images.

At approximately 5’6″ with a US shoe size 7, however, Hudson has a long YNS footwear history spanning pointed pumps, platforms, boots, mules, and strappy evening sandals. Her Ralph Lauren look reminds us that a floor-length hem can make the shoe almost invisible while still letting footwear dictate the skirt’s final height and fall.

Gwendoline Christie Grounds Oversized Tailoring With Cuban-Heel Boots

Gwendoline Christie moved away from cocktail dresses entirely, choosing a black-and-white trouser look built around exaggerated proportions.

Her loose white blouse featured voluminous sleeves and an oversized bow cascading down the front. High-waisted black trousers created a cleaner vertical line below the waist and provided a structured counterpoint to the blouse.

Gwendoline Christie pairs an oversized white bow blouse with high-waisted black trousers and glossy ankle boots, using the structured footwear to ground the volume of her black-and-white tailoring (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

Squared-Toe Cuban-Heel Boots Give the Tailoring More Weight

Christie finished the trousers with ultra-glossy black ankle boots featuring squared toes, side zips, and Cuban heels. Rather than introducing the narrow line of a conventional stiletto, the boots give the outfit a sturdier base that suits its menswear-influenced proportions.

That choice is especially interesting on Christie, who stands about 6’3″. She has repeatedly worn heels without treating her height as something to disguise. At the 2020 Critics’ Choice Awards, she similarly combined oversized Dior Men tailoring with pointed gray suede stilettos; see how Gwendoline Christie paired Dior Men tailoring with sharp suede pumps.

Gwendoline Christie’s glossy black ankle boots feature squared toes and Cuban heels, adding a sturdier footwear silhouette beneath her tailored black trousers (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

The heel itself also has a distinct footwear history. As our guide to 16 different types of heels explains, Cuban heels typically combine a straight front with a slightly tapered back and have roots in traditional men’s footwear. That helps explain why they work particularly well here: the heel echoes the masculine side of Christie’s tailoring without turning the boot into a heavy flat.

Marisa Abela Keeps Her Black Maxi Minimal With Louboutin Tangueva Sandals

British actress Marisa Abela chose the most streamlined look of the group, wearing a fitted black ankle-length dress with an off-the-shoulder neckline.

A subtle side cutout and center-front seam provided definition without disrupting the monochromatic design. The relatively restrained dress also left more room for the architecture of her shoes to register.

Marisa Abela joins Jamie Bogyo in a fitted off-the-shoulder black maxi dress, finishing the monochromatic look with strappy Christian Louboutin Tangueva sandals and the designer’s signature red soles (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

At 5’5″ (165.1 cm), Abela is around average height, and the ankle-length hem leaves her shoes fully visible rather than hiding them beneath the dress. Her reported US size 7 feet are framed by the Tangueva’s slim straps, while the 4-inch heels add substantial height without the bulk of a platform.

It’s a much more delicate footwear choice than the Burberry Cavalier knee-high boots Abela wore at London Fashion Week, showing how she shifts between barely-there stilettos and substantial boots without relying on one shoe silhouette.

Christian Louboutin Tangueva Sandals Break Up the Monochrome Look

Abela skipped a necklace, keeping the off-the-shoulder neckline clear, and wore her hair in side-parted wet-look waves with smoky eye makeup and a nude lip.

Her Christian Louboutin “Tangueva” sandals in iridescent black leather added the outfit’s most intricate element. Multiple slim straps crossed over the front of the foot, while a narrow T-strap connected them to buckled ankle straps. Four-inch stiletto heels and Louboutin’s red soles completed the design.

A closer look at Marisa Abela’s Christian Louboutin Tangueva sandals, with slim intersecting black straps, an ankle strap and the house’s signature red stiletto heels adding definition beneath her black maxi dress (Credit: Ian West / PA Images / INSTARimages)

The flash of red under Abela’s black sandals is more than a color accent. Christian Louboutin established the contrasting red outsole in 1993 after using red nail polish to transform the dark sole of a prototype. Our evergreen guide to why Christian Louboutin shoes have red soles traces how that studio experiment became one of the most recognizable signatures in designer footwear.

More 2026 Shoe Trends & Celebrity Footwear Moments to Bookmark

From Chanel’s reinterpretation of the slingback to Louboutin’s red-soled evening sandals, these pre-BAFTA looks show how familiar shoe signatures can change through color, proportion, material, and styling. For more footwear context, the YNS guides and red-carpet features below explore the silhouettes shaping celebrity style in 2026.