Cork-born actor Cillian Murphy has been announced as the latest face of Versace with a new fashion campaign.
The 47-year-old, who portrayed American theoretical physicist J Robert Oppenheimer in the biographical war film, will front the campaign, wearing key pieces from the men’s Versace Icons collection.
Launching globally on April 3rd, it will be Murphy’s first campaign for the Italian luxury fashion company.
“I am thrilled that Cillian is joining the Versace family. He is a truly exceptional actor and totally deserves his Oscar win,” chief creative officer Donatella Versace told WWD. “He is magnetic and mesmerising in front of a camera, and I loved seeing him bring Versace to life.”
It comes after Murphy wore a black custom Atelier Versace tailored suit to the the 96th Academy Awards, in Hollywood on March 10. The outfit consisted of ‘a wool tweed single-breasted jacket with contrast silk peaked lapels, a silk formal shirt with pleated front panel and concealed buttons, and mohair wool tailored pants with a large silk waistband’, the brand posted on Instagram.
It was a nod to the label’s past, stylist Rose Forde, who helped design Murphy’s look throughout the film’s press tour and awards, told Vogue.”We looked at a lot of ’90s Versace references,” she said.
Murphy accepted the award for best actor, while Oppenheimer also won best picture, best supporting actor, best director, best original score, best cinematography and best film editing.
The film is the sixth project Murphy has collaborated on with British-American filmmaker Christopher Nolan. He has also starred in Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Inception, The Dark Knight Rises and Dunkirk.
The actor from Douglas, Cork, also starred in the BBC television series Peaky Blinders, a historical drama about a criminal gang in Birmingham, post-World War I.
During Milan Fashion Week last month, Versace unveiled their new 2024 autumn/winter collection, and Solange Knowles’ son Daniel Julez Smith Jr. walked the runway.
The Versace collection “considered wildness, where tailoring is disrupted, print deconstructed, and Atelier Versace fabrics shredded and meticulously hand-woven into new materials”.
“This collection has a rebel attitude and a kind heart. The woman is a good girl with a wild soul. She is prim but sexy. Don’t mess with her! The man is her soulmate, a shy genius. They are breaking the rules to make new ones,” said Versace at the time.
Versace also announced that a smaller Medusa ’95– the Versace logo – will feature across their designs.
