However, it was the 2002 ceremony where she truly turned heads, stepping out in a chic red gown by Elie Saab. The glamorous dress, with its floral-embroidered mesh bodice and elegant silk-taffeta skirt, was what the then-35-year-old wore when she made history as the first Black woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in Monster’s Ball.

“This moment is so much bigger than me,” she said while emotionally accepting her accolade. “This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. It’s for the women that stand beside me—Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox—and is for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened.”

And 22 years later, the Catwoman star—mom to Nahla Ariela Aubry, 16, with ex Gabriel Aubry and son Maceo-Robert Martinez, 10, with her third husband Olivier Martinez—called back to the history-making moment after once again sporting the iconic garment in celebration of Elie Saab’s 1,001st season in Saudi Arabia.

“There are some moments in life that just happen and they change our lives forever! Winning an Academy Award in my Elie Saab gown was one of those moments for me,” Halle wrote on Instagram last November. “Thank you Mr. Saab for being a part of the tapestry of my life as we have been inextricably connected for 22 years now!”

For all the stars who graced the red carpet at the 2025 Oscars, keep reading…