Zendaya Serves Two Tennis Looks to Kick Off Her 'Challengers' Fashion Tour

The actress wore a custom, tennis-inspired Loewe gown and a preppy off-duty look.

Zendaya wears custom Loewe to 'Challengers' premiere
Zendaya wears custom Loewe with a tennis-player print to 'Challengers' premiere.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Zendaya always commits to the role, on the screen and on the red carpet. Next month, she'll star in the new Luca Guadagnino tennis movie Challengers, and she's already doubling down on fashion choices that channel the film.

Last night, the actress wore a green, glittering custom Loewe gown to the Challengers premiere in Sydney, Australia, complete with matching pointed-toe heels and diamond dangle earrings. She was dressed by her long-time stylist Law Roach, who presumably enlisted Loewe for a special reason: The house's creative director, Jonathan Anderson, also designed the costumes for Challengers.

Zendaya wears custom Loewe to 'Challengers' premiere

Zendaya makes a subtle nod to tennis style in custom Loewe at the 'Challengers' premiere in Sydney.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

At first glance, the dress looks to have an abstract black spray-paint design. Upon closer inspection, the splatter is shaped like a tennis player's silhouette, getting ready to serve. In one hand, the shadow holds a racket. The other is throwing a tennis ball in the air, which lands somewhere around Zendaya's ribcage in the form of a black, green, and silver sparkling orb.

Zendaya attends 'Challengers' premiere with co-stars Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor

Zendaya hits the 'Challengers' red carpet with co-stars Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Roach often dresses Zendaya in Loewe. The Spanish "cool girl" upper-mid-range luxury brand is perfect for the people's princess of fashion. The premiere gown's long lines, plunging neck, and dramatic leg slit are also classic Zendaya calling cards.

Zendaya wears a green tennis loewe dress on the red carpet for the challengers film

A closer look at Zendaya's custom Loewe gown, which included a thigh-high slit and a deep-V neckline.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Zendaya on the challengers australia premiere red carpet in a glittering loewe gown

Zendaya even coordinated her glam to her dress, wearing a shimmering green eyeliner and eyeshadow. She also went honey blonde for the premiere, with a curled up-do.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Before she hit the carpet, Roach styled Zendaya in a relaxed, preppy, tennis-inspired get-up to do press. She wore striped blue-and-white shorts and a loose, half-tucked-in blue button down from Elisabetta Franchi. The star dressed up the look with Bulgari jewelry and bright white Christian Louboutin stiletto heels.

A post shared by Law Roach

A photo posted by luxurylaw on

"Dressing the part" is a familiar strategy for Roach and Zendaya. As recent as last month, the duo adapted Zendaya's style to fit a sci-fi mold, as the actress promoted Dune: Part Two wearing vintage Mugler à la C-3PO and a futuristic, sculptural Alaïa number.

It's not just this pair who goes all-in with cinematic references on the red carpet: The method dressing trend really hit its peak last summer with Margot Robbie wearing strictly girly pink for the Barbie movie.

Julia Gray
Contributor

Julia Gray is a contributing fashion writer at Marie Claire, where she covers runway trends, celebrity style, and shopping. In her six years as a journalist, Julia’s reporting has ranged across style, music, Internet culture, art, retail, tech, and more. In addition to Marie Claire, Julia writes for outlets like the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Ringer, New York Magazine, Pitchfork, Nylon, and Vice, among others. Julia's fashion reporting is led by curiosity. Julia is not only interested in critiquing and covering pop culture, but in understanding what our pop culture says about how we live and modern values. When she’s not writing, Julia hosts a podcast called Girls Room, where she and her co-host revisit shows like Girls and Gossip Girl from the beginning with guests like comedian Cat Cohen and writer Hunter Harris. Girls Room was recently cited in the New York Times.