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The question of what celebrities will wear to an awards show always looms large before any ceremony. But it took on new significance ahead of the 30th Critics Choice Awards in Santa Monica, Calif., on Friday: After postponing the event twice because of the Los Angeles wildfires<\/a>, organizers announced that a red-carpet preshow would not be part of the televised broadcast.<\/p>\n How might that decision influence the fashion choices of the television and movie stars in attendance? Would they be riskier? More relaxed?<\/p>\n As people started arriving<\/a>, it soon became clear that absence of TV cameras on the carpet hadn\u2019t stopped most from taking big style swings. For myriad reasons \u2014 most of them good \u2014 these 14 looks were among the most memorable from the Critics Choice Awards.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Instead of a gown, the \u201cLioness\u201d and \u201cBabygirl\u201d actress went with a broad-shouldered Saint Laurent suit jacket, high-waist pants and a polka-dot tie, an ensemble that evoked the men\u2019s wear of Old Hollywood.<\/p>\n The \u201cWicked\u201d star wafted down the carpet in a Dior couture dress with a tentacle-like fringe hanging from its hoop skirt.<\/p>\n The \u201cSing Sing\u201d actor, a noted clotheshorse, did not settle for a classic three-piece suit: His sleek monochromatic look consisted of at least five items, including a sumptuous coat draped suavely over his shoulders.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The \u201cShogun\u201d actress made a strong case for tube tops as formal wear in a breezy red Louis Vuitton ensemble that also included a pleated capelet and a flowy skirt.<\/p>\n In a navy Schiaparelli couture gown with strips of fabric coming apart toward the bottom, the actress, a star of \u201cThe Substance,\u201d resembled a glamorous beetle shedding its exoskeleton.<\/p>\n There was something both sinister and sweet about the actress\u2019s Chanel couture look of floral-print bustier dress shrouded in yards and yards of black tulle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The married actors, in a Dior ball gown and a Dior tuxedo, looked as if they were about to be crowned the queen and the king of a certain high school dance. That wasn\u2019t the only reason Ms. Meester and Mr. Brody, a star of \u201cNobody Wants This,\u201d were a sentimental sight on the carpet: The married actors were among those whose homes were destroyed<\/a> by the Los Angeles wildfires.<\/p>\n Did the \u201cMaria\u201d actress\u2019s lace Elie Saab gown look a little like an antique tablecloth? Yes. Did she pull it off? Yes?<\/p>\n As alluring as the construction of the \u201cHacks\u201d actress\u2019s Louis Vuitton gown was the grace and poise with which she wore it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Ruffles, a bow and crystals were just some of the components of the actress\u2019s Miu Miu dress, which had a girlish D.I.Y. charm.<\/p>\n Soft curves and a diaphanous silvery fabric were elements of the \u201cWicked\u201d actress\u2019s gown that made it look like liquid metal.<\/p>\n In an artsy combination of sculptural statement necklace, woven shawl and pleated skirt, the director and writer could have gone straight from the awards ceremony to an exhibition opening.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The comedian and actress paired her fiery minidress with a clutch bearing what seemed to be two Ds in the pink and orange colors associated with a certain doughnut chain \u2014 the same chain that just released tracksuits<\/a> to promote its new campaign for Super Bowl LIX on Sunday.<\/p>\n Misty White Sidell and Anthony Rotunno contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nNicole Kidman: Most Humphrey Bogart!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Ariana Grande: Most Jellyfish!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Colman Domingo: Most Layered!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Moeka Hoshi: Most Tubular!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Demi Moore: Most Insectoid!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Lupita Nyong\u2019o: Most Tulle!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Leighton Meester and Adam Brody: Most Prom Court!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Angelina Jolie: Most Grandma\u2019s Lace!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Hannah Einbinder: Most Geometric!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Marissa Bode: Most Quicksilver!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Issa L\u00f3pez: Most Gallery Owner!<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Bridget Everett: Most Runs on Dunkin!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n