Zendaya didn’t need a golden crown or a pair of wings to evoke a Greek goddess. At a London photocall for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey in July 2026, she appeared in a custom ivory Jacquemus gown, its draped fabric falling into a long column and extending into a head covering. The look was unmistakably contemporary, yet its connection to ancient Greek imagery was difficult to miss.
Playing Athena in Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s epic, Zendaya had plenty of inspiration to draw from. Together with stylist Law Roach, she turned the film’s mythology into a series of fashion moments, moving between fluid Grecian silhouettes, archival designs, and sculptural couture.
Her wardrobe offered a particularly visible example of the mythology fashion trend, although the relationship between ancient stories and fashion goes back much further. What made this moment distinctive was the way a film character’s visual identity continued beyond the screen, becoming part of the actress’s public appearances.
How The Odyssey Brought Mythology Into Fashion
The promotional tour for The Odyssey gave Zendaya and Law Roach an opportunity to explore fashion references connected to the film’s ancient Greek setting.
One of the most memorable appearances came in Paris, where Zendaya wore an archival Givenchy couture dress designed by Alexander McQueen in 1997. The white ensemble, with its exaggerated shoulders and sculptural construction, originally appeared in McQueen’s The Search for the Golden Fleece collection.
The collection drew inspiration from the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, a different story from Homer’s Odyssey. That distinction made the fashion reference particularly interesting: the dress wasn’t a costume from the film, but a piece of fashion history with its own connection to Greek mythology.
Zendaya’s appearances also attracted attention across fashion publications, including coverage from ELLE Italia, as the film’s visual world became part of the conversation surrounding her wardrobe.
The looks demonstrated how a movie’s themes can influence celebrity styling without requiring actors to dress like their characters.
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Why Grecian Draping Still Feels Contemporary
Among the most recognizable influences of ancient Greek art on fashion is the way fabric falls around the body.
Classical sculptures often depict garments arranged in long folds, with fabric following the contours of the figure rather than relying on the fitted construction familiar in many modern clothes.
Contemporary designers can achieve similar visual effects through pleating, draping, and carefully placed seams. A dress might fall in loose columns from the shoulder, gather around the waist, or create movement through layers of lightweight material.
The appeal lies partly in the contrast between structure and softness. Fabric can appear almost architectural while remaining fluid enough to move naturally with the wearer.
These references also belong to a much longer history of how artists have represented the human body. The changing portrayal of curvy women in classical art offers another perspective on the relationship between beauty, proportion, and the visual traditions that continue to influence fashion.
Importantly, Grecian draping does not automatically make a garment mythological. The connection becomes stronger when designers combine classical forms with recognizable symbols, characters, or stories from ancient legends.
The Difference Between Mythology and Historical Costume
A designer creating a costume for a film about ancient Greece has a different task from someone developing a contemporary collection inspired by the same period.
Costume designers must consider the character, setting, and visual world of the production. Fashion designers have greater freedom to borrow individual elements without recreating an entire historical appearance.
A metallic breastplate might inspire the construction of a modern bodice. The folds of a marble statue could influence an evening gown, while the image of a goddess might suggest a particular color palette or silhouette.
These details do not necessarily reproduce ancient clothing. They offer a way to explore familiar imagery through modern materials and techniques.
The distinction becomes clearer when looking at fashion history, where designers have repeatedly revisited earlier periods while changing their proportions, construction methods, and decorative details.
In Zendaya’s case, the archival Givenchy dress carried a specific mythological reference, while the Jacquemus gown drew more directly on the appearance of classical drapery.
How Fashion Editorials Build on Ancient Stories
A fashion photograph can suggest a mythological character without reproducing a scene from an ancient story.
The effect may come from a model’s pose, the direction of the lighting, the placement of fabric, or the relationship between the clothing and its surroundings. A dramatic silhouette photographed against a simple background can evoke the stillness of classical sculpture, while movement and flowing material create a different impression.
These choices become particularly interesting when fashion photography accompanies a film rooted in mythology.
The audience may recognize visual references from the story, even when the clothes belong entirely to contemporary fashion. The resulting images can stand on their own as editorial work while retaining a connection to the film that inspired them.
That is what made Zendaya’s The Odyssey wardrobe such an interesting example. Her appearances moved between recognizable classical influences and archival fashion pieces with histories of their own, giving each look a distinct visual identity.
Mythology Beyond the Red Carpet
Ancient mythology has influenced luxury fashion in ways that extend well beyond celebrity press tours.
Versace’s Medusa emblem is one of the clearest examples of a mythological figure becoming part of a brand’s identity. Alexander McQueen approached ancient legends through theatrical collections, while other couturiers found inspiration in the proportions and drapery of classical sculpture.
These different approaches are explored further through the work of mythology fashion designers, whose collections reveal how widely the same cultural references can be interpreted.
Zendaya’s wardrobe brought that history into a contemporary entertainment moment. A 1997 couture design could appear alongside a newly created Jacquemus gown, with both contributing to the visual atmosphere surrounding Nolan’s film.
The most memorable detail may be how little the outfits needed to resemble actual costumes. Their connection to mythology came through the choices behind them, allowing centuries-old imagery to find a place in contemporary fashion without losing the individuality of the clothes themselves.
