King, who produces and directs in addition to her award-winning acting career, brought audience members to their feet when she announced her intent to staff her productions with 50 percent women moving forward and encouraged others to do the same—across industries.

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“... I’m going to use my platform right now to say in the next two years, everything that I produce, I am making a vow—and it’s going to be tough—to make sure that everything that I produce, that it’s 50 percent women,” she said during her acceptance speech. “And I just challenge anyone out there who is in a position of power—not just in our industry, in all industries—I challenge you to challenge yourselves and stand with us in solidarity and do the same.”

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Indeed, King was one of the brightest lights of the evening, winning hearts, one of the two categories she was nominated for, and the red carpet. Wearing a strapless beaded column custom made for her by Alberta Ferretti Couture in a shade she quipped was like “sparkling rosé,” King was accompanied by son Ian Alexander, Jr. as her adorable and incredibly supportive date for the evening. (She also coordinated well with Beale Street costar, Kiki Layne, who wore blush-colored custom Dior. Both were styled by duo Wayman + Micah.)

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But if we didn’t win all the prizes we’d hoped to, who were the winners on the red carpet? There were some definite color trends, including 2019's “color of the year,” Living Coral, and an abundance of white on men and women alike (peep Chadwick Boseman’s white-on-white custom Versace tux). There was also a surprising amount of green—in shades from forest, to emerald, to mint.

And of course, there was still plenty of black. It was still the go-to for many, and a strategic choice by Lena Waithe, who chose to wear the color in solidarity with the Time’s Up movement and the work that still needs to be done in Hollywood.

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Another trend that was strong this year? Nostalgic touches—whether on the disco-era silhouette and sparkle of Thandie Newton’s Michael Kors gown and voluminous curls; the ancient Egyptian references in Janelle Monae’s unconventional Chanel ensemble; the James Brown-level extravagance of Billy Porter’s fuchsia-lined and intricately embroidered cape and suit; Danai Gurira’s nod to her Zimbabwean heritage with the shade and design of her gown; or the ‘80s-inspired electric blue lashes Lupita Nyong’o subtly rocked to match her custom Calvin Klein gown. (Fun fact: hairstylist Vernon Francois styled Nyong’o’s hair to evoke the shape of T’Challa’s spaceship in Black Panther.)

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As her makeup artist, Nick Barose, told the LA Times, “It’s fun to wear colors, and you can do it in small doses with liner and lashes.” (Barone reportedly used Lancôme products to make Nyong’o’s eyes pop.)

Were there some major misses? Of course—for instance, did Lady Gaga really need to match her hair to her periwinkle Valentino gown? But for the most part, folks played it safe for the first major awards show of the year—after all, we’ve got to pace ourselves. But we’ll let you decide for yourselves what worked and what was whack at the 2019 Golden Globes; just flip through our slideshow below.

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