While my fashion features counterparts were cooing over Emma Corrin’s Princess Diana-coded airport look, worn for her touchdown at Venice Marco Polo Airport, reader, I was staring at her shoes! Three makes a trend in the British offices, meaning we can now, only two days into the 86th iteration of the Venice Film Festival, decree that Celine’s jazz shoes are the standout footwear choice on the red carpet, in the arrivals hall, and frankly everywhere else across the lagoon.
On the opening night of the festival, jury president Maggie Gyllenhaal, wore not a spiked stiletto beneath her floor length, plunging-neckline gown, accented with Bulgari high jewellery, but the very same flat shoe. It looked chic, modern and frankly perfectly practical in a city made up of slippery canalsides, where A-listers arrive at film screenings in boats. At the premier of the Danny Boyle-directed Akinola Davies Jr. was also seen dressing down a double-breasted black tuxedo, with a white iteration of the shoe, which first popped into fashion’s consciousness as part of Michael Rider’s debut collection for the brand in 2025.
Maggie Gyllenhaal making a case for the Celine jazz shoe on the red carpet.
It’s certainly unusual that the same shoe has been worn in an arrivals hall and at a film screening – usually off-duty and red carpet looks are markedly different – but when you consider the versatility of the style, perhaps it’s no surprise. My colleague Daniel Rogers has already pointed out that they’ve danced into Venice amidst a “perfect storm of ballet pumps and low-profile trainers”, and they are already charting as one of 2026’s most wanted products, according to Lyst’s quarterly ranking of the most searched-for, talked-about and purchased items.
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Emma Corrin making the Celine jazz shoe work for dressed down airport style.
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After the first Gyllenhaal-clad sighting of the jazz shoes in question, British Kerry McDermott appeared mildly perplexed regarding their popularity. But considering she was wearing a pair of cult-status Dries Van Noten low profile trainers at the time, I’m confident that she’ll come around.
