Zooey Deschanel’s Red-Carpet Style: From Towering Platforms to Comfortable Chic

Zooey Deschanel’s red-carpet style has long paired retro-inspired dresses with distinctive footwear, from Sergio Rossi platform pumps at the 2012 ESPY Awards to Roger Vivier pumps worn with an Abodi tulle dress at the 2019 premiere of The Lion King.

One of her more unexpected appearances came at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City on May 6, 2013, for the Costume Institute Gala celebrating PUNK: Chaos to Couture. Deschanel wore her hair swept away from her forehead rather than in the signature bangs that have defined much of her public image.

Zooey Deschanel wears her hair without her signature bangs at the Costume Institute Gala for “PUNK: Chaos to Couture” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City on May 6, 2013 (Credit: FayesVision / WENN / Lia Toby / Nikki Nelson)

In August 2013, Deschanel told Glamour that her relationship with bangs began with her first haircut at age two. Although she tried growing them out several times, she said the change never stuck and that she became very particular about their shape and length.

Earlier appearances offer a useful contrast with the hairstyle she later made her signature.

Zooey Deschanel wears her hair away from her forehead with curled ends and a bow headband at a Kiehl’s anniversary party at Barneys in Los Angeles on October 17, 2001

She was again photographed with her forehead exposed while posing with her sister, Emily Deschanel, at the Glory Road world premiere in Los Angeles in January 2006.

Emily Deschanel and Zooey Deschanel pose together at the Glory Road world premiere at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles on January 5, 2006

By July 2019, Deschanel was firmly back to her familiar bangs-and-pumps combination for the premiere of The Lion King at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Zooey Deschanel wears an Abodi Spring 2019 polka-dot tulle dress with sheer puff sleeves and a statement black bow at The Lion King premiere in Hollywood on July 9, 2019

She paired the Abodi Spring 2019 tulle dress with black tights and Roger Vivier pumps, while a Jimmy Choo “Celeste” clutch completed the black-and-white look.

Deschanel attended with her father, cinematographer and director Caleb Deschanel, her mother, actress Mary Jo Deschanel, and her sister, actress Emily Deschanel.

Mary Jo Deschanel, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Deschanel, and Caleb Deschanel attend The Lion King premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on July 9, 2019

The actress is 5 feet 4½ inches tall and wears a US women’s shoe size 8. Her footwear archive on Your Next Shoes ranges from flats and Mary Janes to classic pumps and much higher platform styles, including the Sergio Rossi heels she chose for the ESPYs.

Zooey Deschanel’s Sergio Rossi Cachet Platform Pumps at the 2012 ESPY Awards

At the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles on July 11, 2012, Deschanel wore a metallic gold-and-silver sequined Oscar de la Renta dress cinched with a glossy red belt. She carried an Edie Parker clutch, wore Dana Rebecca Designs earrings, and finished the look with champagne-gold Sergio Rossi Cachet platform pumps.

Zooey Deschanel pairs her metallic Oscar de la Renta dress with a red belt and champagne-gold Sergio Rossi platform pumps at the 2012 ESPY Awards

The red belt separated the metallic tones of the dress and shoes, while the pumps extended the high-shine finish all the way to the red carpet.

Zooey Deschanel wears her signature bangs with a black headband and metallic Oscar de la Renta dress at the 2012 ESPY Awards in Los Angeles on July 11, 2012

The Sergio Rossi Cachet combines several details associated with statement evening footwear of the period: a high stiletto heel, a substantial covered platform, and a teardrop-shaped peep toe. Our guide to platform heels explains how raising the forefoot changes the proportions and effective pitch of a high heel.

A closer look at Zooey Deschanel’s champagne-gold Sergio Rossi Cachet pumps, featuring a covered platform and teardrop-shaped peep toe

The Cachet is essentially a high-heeled peep-toe pump built on a pronounced platform. For more on how this silhouette differs from closed-toe and slingback versions, see our guide to pumps and their major styles.

Deschanel has returned to decorative pumps throughout her red-carpet career. At the 2015 New York premiere of Rock the Kasbah, for example, she paired a shimmering Lela Rose dress and patterned tights with L.K. Bennett “Heidi” glitter pumps, another example of her preference for classic pump shapes finished with noticeable texture or shine.

Sergio Rossi Cachet platform slingbacks in pale pink satin with crystal embellishments and slim stiletto heels

Purple Sergio Rossi Cachet platform pumps feature textured uppers, a peep toe, and slender high heels

Sergio Rossi Cachet platform pump in glossy red patent with a peep toe and slim stiletto heel

How Zooey Deschanel’s Shoe Style Shifted From High Heels to More Comfortable Choices

The towering Sergio Rossi platforms capture an earlier chapter of Zooey Deschanel’s footwear style. Her red-carpet wardrobe of the 2010s frequently combined feminine dresses, tights, and statement heels, but her later appearances show how she retained that recognizable aesthetic while becoming more selective about high heels.

A useful midpoint came at the Academy’s 7th Annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Hollywood on November 14, 2015. Deschanel wore a color-blocked Kate Spade New York fit-and-flare dress with Wolford tights and Chanel shoes, bringing together several elements that recur throughout her style archive: a defined waist, graphic color, hosiery, and classic footwear.

Zooey Deschanel pairs a color-blocked Kate Spade New York fit-and-flare dress with Wolford tights and Chanel shoes at the Academy’s 7th Annual Governors Awards in Hollywood on November 14, 2015 (Credit: Matt Petit / ©A.M.P.A.S.)

Deschanel later became candid about the physical cost of high heels and increasingly embraced more comfortable footwear. The change didn’t require abandoning the details of her personal style: tights, bows, Mary Janes, flats, lower heels, and playful proportions can all serve the same purpose without the height of the Sergio Rossi platforms she wore earlier in her career.

Her appearance at the Academy’s 15th Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood on November 17, 2024, illustrates that continuity. Deschanel wore a black mini dress with shimmering long sleeves, sheer dotted tights, a black hair bow, and glossy black multi-strap platform shoes. On Instagram, she identified Celine in connection with the look and credited stylist Ib Abdel Nasser, hairstylist Candice Birns, and makeup artist Lilly Keys.

Zooey Deschanel returns to a familiar combination of a short feminine dress, tights, and statement shoes at the Academy’s 15th Governors Awards at Ovation Hollywood on November 17, 2024 (Credit: Mark Von Holden / The Academy)

The two Governors Awards looks, nine years apart, show more continuity than reinvention. Deschanel still gravitates toward feminine silhouettes, tights, bows, and distinctive shoes; what has changed is her willingness to prioritize comfort rather than treating towering heels as a red-carpet requirement.