These days, the Oscars Nominees Luncheon—the annual occasion for the yr’s Academy Award contenders, the place a proper group picture is all the time taken—is simply one other glitzy cease on the awards season marketing campaign path; one more alternative for polished technique dressing and relentless glad-handing. Not so, nonetheless, within the ’80s, ’90s, and early aughts. Again then, the likes of Steven Spielberg, Whoopi Goldberg, River Phoenix, and Frances McDormand would present up in denims somewhat than crisp tailoring; Cate Blanchett and Gwyneth Paltrow in plush knitwear somewhat than show-stopping ballgowns; and Sofia Coppola within the minimalist, pared-back separates which have all the time been her signature. Most attendees went makeup-free, wore flats, donned sun shades, carried their very own baggage on the low-key step-and-repeat (stunning, I do know), and simply didn’t appear to take the entire thing all that severely. In brief, it was a complete different world.
In honor of the 2026 Oscar nominees luncheon on February 10, revisit the occasion’s refreshingly informal heyday under.