Throughout her stellar career, Kate Winslet has had the chance to play some truly iconic roles. Almost more memorable than her acting itself are the stunning outfits she’s been lucky enough to wear while portraying characters from all walks of life.
Winslet has worn a lot of period pieces during her career, so we know that she’s one of the few people on this planet who can rock vintage fashion and look divine in it. But she always looks stunning, whether she’s wearing something totally simple or something a little more extravagant. Check out our ranking of Kate Winslet’s best-ever on-screen outfits!
A Villainous Suit - Divergent (2014)
It’s not often that Kate Winslet plays the villain in a film, but she did a brilliant job of it in Divergent, the adaptation of Veronica Roth’s YA dystopian novel. We hated seeing Winslet as the controlling Jeanine Matthews, but we did love seeing her on-screen outfits.
As Jeanine, Winslet doesn’t wear the typical vintage dresses that her characters tend to wear. She is instead dressed up in futuristic ensembles that weirdly suited her. She may be an annoying villain, but at least she’s a villain with taste.
The Red Bathing Suit - Little Children (2006)
It’s official: red is Kate Winslet’s color. She does typically wear scarlet gowns to every red carpet event, so we love getting the chance to see her in the shade when we can. That’s why this bathing suit that she wears in Little Children has made it onto the list of our favorite Kate Winslet outfits ever!
Little Children, which was released in 2006, tells the story of two people who are married, though not to each other, when they begin a romantic affair. It is based on a 2004 book of the same name.
Summer Dress - Labor Day (2013)
The image of Kate Winslet in a summer dress never gets old. Even if it’s super simple with no bells and whistles, she seems to look her best in plain outfits that let her beauty speak for itself. We are loving the dress she wears in Labor Day, the 2013 thriller.
Winslet stars in the film alongside Josh Brolin. She plays Adele, a woman who picks up a wounded man and tries to look after him before discovering that he has a dark secret. Winslet plays the role of the scared mother trying to protect her son perfectly!
Vintage Dresses, Skirts, Jumpsuits & More - Revolutionary Road (2008)
Like the rest of the planet, we were over the moon when we heard that Kate Winslet was reuniting with Leonardo DiCaprio for Revolutionary Road. Although the film was moving and so powerful, it did not give these two co-stars the chance to have the happy ending that was stolen from them in Titanic. But it did give Winslet the chance to wear some super cool ‘50s outfits.
In Revolutionary Road, Winslet stars as April Wheeler, a housewife looking for something more. Other than the impressive acting from both Winslet and DiCaprio, our favorite thing about this film is the vintage dresses, skirts, and jumpsuits that Winslet wears.
Her 1950s Wardrobe - Wonder Wheel (2017)
Sometimes, we catch ourselves wondering whether or not Kate Winslet is actually a time-traveler sent here from the 1950s. It would make sense since she seems to look flawless whenever she has to wear ‘50s-inspired costumes in her movies.
In 2017, Winslet appeared in Wonder Wheel, a story about four people’s lives intertwining against the backdrop of the Coney Island Amusement Park. Again, Winslet wears a selection of gorgeous 1950s outfits, like this one, that look amazing on her. We’re especially loving the way the earthy tone of the skirt matches her hair.
Vintage Dresses - The Reader (2008)
In one of Winslet’s more powerful roles, she portrayed Hanna Schmitz in The Reader, the film adaptation of the book by Bernard Schlink. Hanna is quite different from the characters Winslet usually plays in that she’s a former Auschwitz guard on trial for war crimes. She has an affair with the protagonist Michael, who is more than 20 years younger than her.
Winslet spends a good portion of the film dressed as a tram conductor, but she does also appear on-screen in a few stunning vintage dresses. This is one of our favorites.
Period Costumes - Sense & Sensibility (1995)
Kate Winslet wears many outfits that give us serious envy—outfits that we wish we could wear. This frock from Sense and Sensibility is not one of them. But given the context of the Jane Austen adaptation, we do love it on Winslet while she’s on-screen. No matter what period her costumes are from, she always looks divine in over-the-top gowns and grandiose hats.
Sense and Sensibility, one of Jane Austen’s most popular works, follows the story of the Dashwood sisters, Elinor and Marianne, as they come of age and navigate through life.
A New Chic Look - The Holiday (2006)
The Holiday has to be one of our favorite Kate Winslet films of all time. The 2006 Christmas flick sees Winslet and co-star Cameron Diaz playing Iris and Amanda, two women who swap homes for two weeks over Christmas. Playing Iris, Winslet travels to Los Angeles where she tries to get over a man who doesn’t love her.
What we love most about Iris wearing this little black dress is that it symbolizes her new and powerful mindset. When she’s still in love with Jasper, her style is frumpy. But as she eliminates him from her life, she adopts this chic new look.
Her Red Dress - The Dressmaker (2015)
It’s no wonder that Kate Winslet got the chance to wear some gorgeous gowns while playing a dressmaker! The Australian film was released in 2015 and sees Winslet playing Tilly Dunnage, a woman who returns to the rural Australian town she grew up in to seek revenge on the locals who accused her of murder.
There’s a whole list of dresses that Winslet wears as the dressmaker Tilly, but the best is undoubtedly this red number that makes her stand out like a sore thumb in her simple little country town.
Ball Gown - Titanic (1997)
There is only one thing more epic than the film Titanic: the early 20th-century dresses that Kate Winslet wears while playing Rose DeWitt-Bukater in Titanic. Being a rich girl aboard the luxury liner, Rose wears a series of extravagant and elegant frocks that seem to turn heads wherever she goes.
Out of all the dresses that Rose wears, from the colorful ship-sinking gown to the yellow-and-white frock she wears when Jack first sets eyes on her, we love his deep red dress the most. Rose wears when she first brings Jack to their First Class dinner and then escapes with him for a real party below deck.