Michaela Coel lights up the red carpet. Eyes are instantly drawn to the British-Ghanian actor when she walks into a room, for her beauty, but most notably her charismatic personality and coruscating expression of style (case in point: her head-to-toe Burberry moment on Jimmy Fallon's chat show this week). So, of course, for the huge global event that was the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever world premiere, we expected nothing less than breath-taking, internet breaking brilliance.
For the first showing of the latest instalment of the much-hyped Marvel franchise, which took place last night in Los Angeles, Coel - who plays queer captain and combat instructor Aneka in the film - turned to Manchester-born designer Maximilian Davis, newly appointed Creative Director of major Italian fashion house Ferragamo. Already having an established relationship with Davis, and having championed the young designer's work under his eponymous label (currently on pause), he was an obvious choice for the 35-year-old. ‘Maximilian designed my 2021 BAFTA dress during a period in which we were both experiencing a transition in our careers. It felt intentional and meaningful to have him make me a custom outfit for this night,' Coel explains.
Davis, who was appointed to the helm of Salvatore Ferragamo (now rebranded as Ferragamo), back in March, sent his debut spring/summer 2023 collection down the runway in September to a rave reception. Georgia Medley, Coel’s stylist and ELLE UK’s Fashion Editor, was enamoured with what she saw (Coel and Medley watched the show together but remotely and across different time zones) and set her sights on having the Fashion East alumni construct a bespoke look for the I May Destroy You creator. ‘We had a few ideas ruminating, but nothing quite clicked until we saw Ferragamo by Maximilian,’ explains Medley. It was Davis’s delicately draped, sleeveless hooded tippex-white and inky black gowns (looks 51 and 60, to be exact) and fiery-red gemstone-smattered offerings that sparked a light-bulb moment for the stylist. ‘Originally, the dress was going to be covered in red gemstones to signify the Ferragamo house code, but due to a shortage, we had to go back to the drawing table. After liaising with Max, we came up with the idea to go with a rich, brown hue to compliment Michaela’s skin tone.’
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After roughly two weeks of construction, the look was ready. ‘Everybody shed a tear. Seeing the culmination of Max’s work was a lovely moment,’ says Coel. Amplifying Black talent is of the utmost importance to her. Whether it be her blossoming working relationship with Davis, championing innovative Black jewellery designers, or bringing Black creatives into her inner circle, celebrating her community will never take a back seat. ‘It’s easy to live in a bubble of television and film and not realise that there are other Black women pioneering other fields. You must try and promote one another – Georgia’s helped clue me into some people. It's cool discovering Black female designers and Black queer designers and being informed about those things.’ And who’s on her radar now? ‘I like Dorian Webb and Thelma West,’ she answers.
Travelling on the road together, Coel and Medley have formed a close bond and have pored over many a rack of luxury clothing side-by-side. The actor notes that Medley’s bold vision was what piqued her interest and that the stylist has been a fundamental force behind her latest, note-worthy style chapter. ‘We’re on the same page when it comes to Black designers, and we enjoy the same designers outside of that. I’m open to her bolder choices.’
Medley echoes her sentiments: ‘It's been amazing to see her transformation and she’s incredibly open. When we go out, she's got a spring in her step, and she owns every look.’ Working with her during this period of her career has been particularly poignant, Medley concludes. ‘Michaela and I were in the airport last night, and we saw her face up on billboards and across posters. This is a such a big thing for so many of us who are lucky enough to be a part of this journey. It’s a huge moment.’
