Cate Blanchett Embraces the Venice Dramatics in a Black Velvet Gown
With a streak of showstopping style moments, Cate Blanchett has quickly established herself as the best-dressed guest at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. So far at the Italian event, the actor has stepped out in designs from Moschino, Armani Privé, and Louis Vuitton, turning to the last for her latest look.
Sunday night at the premiere of Wolfs—a crime thriller starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt—Blanchett brought her own edge to the red carpet in a stunning velvet gown. The custom Louis Vuitton number featured a strapless neckline that ruffled at its edges, and below, the same sculptural effect created a staggered train of velvety fabric. In a dramatic fashion fitting of the film festival, the Tár actor allowed her pointed black velvet heels to stick out from underneath her gown.
In tune with her past looks, Blanchett accessorized sparingly, opting to wear a single diamond ring on her left hand. She subtly mixed metals by pairing gold studs with silver gemstone earrings, and wore her short blonde hair in a curled style with a deep side part. A smoky gray eye shadow, dewy skin, and dark pink lipstick rounded out her look.
But a recent interview with Cate Blanchett, who played the elf Galadriel, laid bare how relatively little the cast got paid for starring in movies that made almost $3 billion at the box office, and provided the momentum for “The Hobbit” trilogy, which made a further $2.9 billion.
The legacy of the beloved films, which cemented actors like Orlando Bloom, Elijah Wood, and Viggo Mortensen as Hollywood royalty, has also been somewhat tarnished by financial legal disputes over the years.
Rob Mitchell, the director of theatrical insights at Gower Street Analytics, told Business Insider the actors’ salaries were likely relatively low because the film was a risk for the studio and it had a large cast. New Line Cinema spent $281 million on making the trilogy, according to Box Office Mojo. That’s the equivalent of $514 million today.
“For them to greenlight three ‘Lord of the Rings’ movies was a huge gamble, and basically the money was all going into the films. I can also understand they wouldn’t necessarily have had huge paydays for the actors because it is an ensemble film,” he said.
Here’s what we know about who was paid what for “The Lord of the Rings.”
