Zendaya, 30, who is often hailed as the star whose “best look is the next one,” continued her successful streak of red carpet appearances at the 2026 Emmys.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, held on Monday, September 14, at Los Angeles’ Peacock Theater, saw the Dune actress step out in a sparkling Prada gown and a short pixie haircut.
Highlights
- Zendaya paid a tribute to Halle Berry at the 2026 Emmys, where she wore a Prada gown and debuted a pixie haircut.
- Berry reacted to the homage with heartfelt messages.
- Berry has previously talked about wanting to work with Zendaya and the latter’s positive impact on Hollywood.
Her longtime stylist, Law Roach, revealed on the Emmys red carpet that the look was inspired by Halle Berry—a connection that many netizens also made.
Now, Berry herself has opened up about the comparisons with a short but sweet message.
Zendaya paid a tribute to Halle Berry with her 2026 Emmys look
After going for a softer, neutral palette for The Odyssey press tour and a gothic glamor vibe for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Zendaya switched it up for a custom Prada gown at the 2026 Emmys.
The crystal-embellished dress came with a plunging neckline, sheer details, a fitted column silhouette, and a dramatic train. She accessorized with a Rolex watch and a Mikimoto jewelry set featuring 4.40-carat diamond earrings and a 5-carat finger ring.
But what got fashion enthusiasts most excited was her new pixie cut.
“It’s giving young Halle Berry, and she looks so, so good,” one viewer commented. Another said, “Give her the Halle Berry biopic main role already.”
Zendaya’s stylist Law Roach, who is largely to be credited for Zendaya’s fan-favorite method dressing, revealed on the red carpet that Halle Berry had indeed been the inspiration behind the look.
“We are paying a little homage to Halle Berry tonight. You'll see it,” he told Refinery29 before Zendaya walked the carpet.
Later, while speaking with E! News, he added, “She's debuting a new haircut. It's better tonight. She cut it a little bit more, and we're paying homage to another great African-American, beautiful actress.”
Zendaya was previously seen with a bob-pixie, or a “bixie” as the internet calls it, during The Drama press tour, and was recently seen with a slightly longer version of her Emmys haircut around September 12 during New York Fashion Week, out with Euphoria co-stars Hunter Schafer and Alexa Demie.
Halle Berry reacted to the special homage on social media
After the event, Law Roach shared Zendaya’s side-by-side comparison with Halle Berry’s iconic pixie cut look from the early 2000s on his Instagram Stories, and tagged the Never Let Go actress.
Berry reshared them on Instagram with hearts and kisses emojis, and on a clip of his comments she wrote, “She m*rder*d the night.”
She shared another such comparison post on X and wrote, “My girl,” with a sparkle and a clap emoji.
Berry wore a similar sparkling, sheer silver Collette Dinnigan minidress paired with her pixie cut at the Los Angeles premiere of the James Bond film Die Another Day in November 2002.
She had the same haircut in the movie itself, as well as in the 2001 romantic drama Monster's Ball, for which she won her Oscar.
Fans of the actresses were ecstatic to see Zendaya and Berry honor each other, and some of them demanded to see the two together in a film.
“Do I smell a f**king movie, because I literally cannot right now. Is it giving mother? Is it giving sisters?” one person suggested. Another wrote, “Zendaya needs to play your daughter.”
“She is one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood today. She reminds me of you!” another fan commented.
Halle Berry herself is interested in working closely with Zendaya
Viewers are not alone in wanting to see Zendaya and Berry work together. Berry has already said she would love to play Zendaya's mother in a project.
“There is an actress that I love with every fiber of my being. I love her, and I would love to play her mother,” she said about Zendaya during a February 2026 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show.
The video went viral after Zendaya’s Emmy tribute, and one netizen said, “This interview aged so well. Please make this happen.”
Earlier in 2021, during a virtual panel for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as part of the Sundance Film Festival, Berry said Zendaya was the “walking embodiment” of the shift in Black women’s success in the film industry.
“At 24, that she can have an idea and go get it done and get enough support behind her to get that done and to give her the power and to keep the creativity, I think that says so much for where we have gotten, and that is what makes me want to keep fighting. Because of Zendaya, at 24, a Black woman can do that,” Berry said.
“You are proof positive that things are changing, and I couldn't be prouder, and I know you probably can't be prouder of yourself, which is most important,” she said to the Euphoria star, who was also part of the panel.
At the 2026 Emmys, Zendaya was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Rue Bennett in the final season of Euphoria, alongside the likes of Carrie Coon and Keri Russell.
Rhea Seehorn took home the award for her performance in Pluribus.
"We need a movie with Halle and Zendaya," one netizen commented
