The Vanity Fair Oscars bash was said to have descended into chaos on Sunday night when guests were confronted by ‘crazy bright’ lighting on the red carpet.
According to onlookers, the VIP guests were less than impressed by the ‘unflattering’ lighting because of how their pictures turned out, with one actress reduced to tears upon seeing her photograph.
‘I genuinely feel bad for some of these women,’ one guest said.
Another insider said that it was ‘like being shot in extremely high-def. You saw a lot of excess pounds and wrinkles that used to be hidden. Nobody wants to be photographed like that!’
The change of lighting came as a result of Vanity Fair’s new editor, Mark Guiducci, moving the event from its longtime home at the Wallis Annenberg Center in Beverly Hills to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) this year.
So was the lighting unforgiving, or were the celebs just overreacting?
How the stars’ social media snaps compared to their pictures at the Vanity Fair Oscars party after complaints of ‘unforgiving’ lighting (Kris Jenner on social media, left, and at the bash)
According to onlookers, the VIP guests were less than impressed by the ‘unflattering’ lighting because of how their pictures came out (Heidi Klum on social media, left, and at the bash)
An insider said it was ‘like being shot in extremely high-definition. You saw a lot of excess pounds and wrinkles that used to be hidden’ (Kim Kardashian on social media, left and, at the bash)
One actress was left in tears over photos that saw her looking like a ‘Diane Arbus character,’ according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The Arbus comparison is particularly brutal given the photographer’s legacy of haunting imagery.
Her work focused on unconventional subjects, from circus performers to giants, captured in a stark style that is the opposite of Hollywood glamour.
Meanwhile, the morning after, many stars chose to share photos from Guy Oseary and Madonna’s annual bash instead of the official photos from the Vanity Fair carpet.
This year’s lighting stood in stark contrast to the soft, golden glow of previous bashes, as one longtime guest said that in prior years ‘even the ugliest stars knew they’d come out all right. It was like magic’.
One attendee said that it was ‘crazy-bright’ at the event and compared it to ‘standing under klieg lights’.
Another said that ‘it was like a hundred degrees’ and wondered if she was ‘having hot flashes’.
The glamour took another hit when the traditional red carpet was replaced by a light gray shag, which was mocked for its drab appearance by a number of social media users.
Guiducci was reportedly determined to restore the party’s fading luster and ordered a brutal refinement of the guest list.
‘Mark only wanted the most AAA-list stars,’ an insider told the outlet, adding that ‘he must have gone over that list a thousand times.’
The Daily Mail has reached out to Vanity Fair and Guiducci for comment.
This year’s lighting stood in stark contrast to the soft, golden glow of previous bashes (Demi Moore on social media, left, and at the bash)
One attendee said that it was ‘crazy-bright’ at the event and compared it to ‘standing under klieg lights’ (Vera Wang on social media, left, and at the bash)
Vanity Fair’s new editor, Mark Guiducci, moved the event from its longtime home at the Wallis Annenberg Center in Beverly Hills to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) this year. Above, with Nicole Kidman
This year, the red carpet excluded B-listers like media reporters and TV stars.
One high-profile star who skipped the event was Emma Stone.
Despite being invited, Stone opted to go to the Universal Pictures party and later headed to A24’s bash.
When questioned about the Vanity Fair bash, she said in a video shared to X: ‘It’s so weird, even if you’re nominated, it doesn’t mean you can go.’
Guests at the new LACMA venue were supposed to get a first look at the museum’s new David Geffen galleries.
However, the area remained unfinished by the night of the Oscars, and the party was moved to a less glitzy part of the museum.
The guests also reportedly complained about the traffic as well as the party’s ‘influencer emcees’, who reportedly ‘insulted several VIPs’.
Not everyone was ready to write off the bash just yet. One guest pointed out that it was merely the ‘first time’ at the new venue, adding: ‘I’ll still go next year.’
The high-profile guest list this year also featured the likes of Kylie Jenner and Timothee Chalamet, Kim Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, Emily Ratajkowski, Jessica Alba and Hailey Bieber.
