Penélope Cruz’s Best Moments in Chanel

Few actors embraced Karl Lagerfeld’s vision at Chanel quite like Penélope Cruz, who attended her first show in 1999. “I’ve been with [Chanel] always. I see the same people here… Some of them I met in 1999,” she told Vogue this year, of working with the highly experienced atelier. Now, she’s co-hosting the 2023 Met Gala, which honors the life and legacy of Karl Lagerfeld, the man who helmed Chanel for over 30 years (and worked with many other labels). In honor of the occasion, we’re looking back at Cruz’s best moments wearing the brand over the years.

Cruz has chosen Chanel for many meaningful moments over the course of her career. Long before the rise of highly watched and dissected red carpet fashion, the actor casually wore bespoke Chanel to the low-key 2004 premiere of Don’t Move. The actor was immaculate in her white tweed skirt suit, which featured gold buttons and frayed edges. When nominated for “Best Supporting Actress” at the 2008 Academy Awards for her role in Vicky Christina Barcelona, Cruz turned to Chanel once more. She accepted her award in a dramatic all-black gown that featured feathers around the bustline and a dramatic corseted waist: pure elegance.

In 2018, Cruz took her relationship with Karl Lagerfeld’s designs for Chanel to the next level by becoming a house ambassador for the luxury house. She has demonstrated the remarkable versatility and reliable chicness of tweed suits at a variety of appearances since, donning versions of the brand’s marquee ensemble in coal black, speckled gray, and trimmed white.

Perhaps the most poignant moment of the relationship came when Cruz walked in Lagerfled’s final Chanel show, which took place only a few weeks after the designer’s death on February 19, 2019. “Over the last year working together with him, especially, we became close, we had a very strong connection,” Cruz told WWD shortly after the show. “I loved all the conversations I would have with him. He knew so much about everything, and still had so much curiosity to keep on learning,”

Below, some of Penéllope Cruz’s best Chanel moments through the years.