The Revenge Dress: An Unofficial History of Post-Breakup Glamour - TownandCountrymag.com

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Julia Fox and Kanye West's globetrotting romance ended almost as soon as it began, but that didn't stop the downtown It girl turned tabloid superstar from seeking vengeance on her ex—by way of a killer dress. Just one day after the couple ended their brief affair, on Valentine's Day no less, Fox opened LaQuan Smith's show at New York Fashion Week, sauntering down the runway in a slinky skintight black turtleneck gown with strategically suggestive cutouts around her chest to show Ye exactly what he'll be missing. With this move she joined an elite club of other famous women who have spectacularly—and very publicly—managed to turn heartbreak into a glorious style statement.

Women may have been weaponizing fashion for centuries, but it was Princess Diana, in the summer of 1994, who singlehandedly birthed the concept of the revenge dress. On the night of the broadcast of that infamous interview, the one where Prince Charles admitted to his affair with Camilla on national television, Di let her anger be known to the world by showing up to an event at the Serpentine Gallery in a short off-the-shoulder black silk dress cut just low enough to teeter on the precipice of royal scandal, with her nails painted fire red and her neck wrapped in a multi-strand pearl choker with a sapphire so big it seemed to possess magical powers. So historic was this moment that the Christina Stambolian-designed number spawned its own Wikipedia page (aptly entitled, "Revenge Dress").

Thanks to Princess Diana, countless women since have been empowered to spin relationship troubles into humiliating teachable moments—for him. And with each new generation it seems the stakes only get higher. Take Jennifer Lopez and Zoë Kravitz, who both delivered fantastic post-breakup revenge moments in 2021 with not just cleavage and a tight (or in Kravitz's case, sheer) dress, but with a hot rebound on their arms—Ben Affleck for the former, Channing Tatum for the latter.

In celebration of Fox's recent entrée into this sorority, T&C looks back on nearly three decades of fabulous revenge dressing—an unofficial (and evolving) history, below.

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Princess Diana

As Princess Diana showed the world 28 years ago, revenge is a dish best served in the form of a clinging LBD that is cut flawlessly and leaves zero doubt as to who has won.

Princess Diana

Perhaps chasing the empowerment high of her first revenge dress moment, Princess Diana once again paired a sexy black gown (this one by Jacques Azagury) with her talismanic sapphire and pearl choker for a gala on November 20, 1995, the same night of the broadcast of her own sensational TV interview with the BBC, in which she would famously remark, "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

Mariah Carey

For Mariah Carey in 1997, finally being free from controlling husband Tommy Mottola manifested in a new emancipated wardrobe, which she debuted at the MTV VMAs that year.

Elizabeth Hurley

That Versace safety pin dress may have catapulted her to red carpet infamy but it was Elizabeth Hurley's plunging champagne gown at her first public outing since her breakup with Hugh Grant in 2000 that inducted her into the Revenge Dress Hall of Fame.

Jennifer Garner

Taking cues from Princess Diana's playbook, Jennifer Garner wore a black off-the-shoulder Versace gown to the 2016 Oscars, just two days after the release of her frank interview with Vanity Fair about her split from Ben Affleck after a decade of marriage.

Bella Hadid

At the 2017 Met Gala, Bella Hadid offered a masterclass in what to wear (an Alexander Wang catsuit) when a run-in with the ex and his new girlfriend (The Weeknd and Selena Gomez) is unavoidable.

Selena Gomez

Shortly after the end of her ten-month relationship with The Weeknd, Selena Gomez attended a party in an itty mini by Jacquemus. While he got back together with Bella Hadid, she soon began hanging out with on-again, off-again boyfriend Justin Bieber. As they say, when one door closes...

Zoë Kravitz

Not all revenge dresses need be black—or, in Zoë Kravitz's case, even be made of much. A month after her divorce from actor Karl Glusman was finalized, the actress attended the Met Gala last September in a sheer Saint Laurent mesh gown (and matching thong). It may not have fit the American fashion theme of the night but it certainly was enough to make new beau Channing Tatum seem superfluous.

Jennifer Lopez

Mere weeks after breaking off her engagement to Alex Rodriguez, Jennifer Lopez rekindled her romance with Affleck—Bennifer 2.0 made their official debut at the Venice Film Festival in September 2021. What's more winning than white hot couture and Cartier diamonds? An A-list rebound.

Julia Fox

Was it a stroke of PR genius or merely a coincidence that Julia Fox's runway debut—opening the LaQuan Smith show last week in this—just happened to be the morning after her breakup with Kanye West?

Leena Kim Associate Editor Leena Kim is an associate editor at Town & Country, where she writes about travel, weddings, arts, and culture.

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The Revenge Dress: An Unofficial History of Post-Breakup Glamour - TownandCountrymag.com