Remember a decade ago when Jennifer Lawrence, Kaley Cuoco and Kristen Wiig led the Great Pixie Cut Reckoning of 2014? Well, Brie Larson has just revived the trend with extremely chic results.
The actress recently debuted her dramatic haircut on social media, sharing black and white images of herself sporting a much shorter hairdo in a much darker shade. The Marvel star’s brunette ‘do comes complete with baby bangs and face-framing sideburns, and of course she sports a wide smile in recognition of how rightfully chuffed she is with the transformation. The new look is particularly surprising given that, just the week, Larson shared images of herself with the classic long blonde locks we’ve come to expect from Captain Marvel herself.
Larson’s haircut was in service of her new role as Elektra (no, not that one) in the namesake West End stage show, which kicks off in London in a few months’ time. Playing the title character, Larson leads the cast of the revival of the Sophocles-written play, trading her Marvel suit for whatever it was people wore circa 420 BC. “Elektra is here,” the actress wrote in the caption, no-doubt catching the attention of Jennifer Garner. Larson is joined in the cast of Elektra by stage icons Stockard Channing, Marième Diouf, Greg Hicks and Patrick Vaill, among others.
Speaking of the upcoming role, Larson — who went the Tom Holland route in swapping the big budget sound stages for live performance — said in September that she “couldn’t be more excited to perform in this Greek drama,” since “storytelling has always been the way I organize life, feelings and experiences.”
Though she’s undoubtedly channelling the titular character of the play (pixie cuts were all the rage among Greek tragedians), Larson’s new look also recalls a more current reference in the form of How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days, a film whose title coincidentally describes my track record on Tinder of late. If you recall, that film features the scene-stealing Mrs. DeLauer (played by Liliane Montevecchi), who, like Larson, sports a fringe-heavy hairdo and gives Kate Hudson a run for her money in terms of leading lady status. Speaking of Hudson, both she in Larson are among the legions of celebrities who’ve given their hair the pixie treatment over the years.
Perhaps tired by the maintenance required of long locks (and the ease of avoiding a blow dryer), everyone from Emma Watson to Zoe Kravitz, Katy Perry, Rihanna, and Charlize Theron has debuted the classic tousled cut, much to the delight of fans. “You look gorgeous!” one fan wrote of Larson’s new look on X, with another adding that the actress’ “face is so dynamic and matches nicely with so many hair styles.” Others quipped that the character-inspired look was “not the Elektra I was thinking of,” or praised Larson for “getting into character” and showcasing her “dedication.”
It’s far from the first time the Academy Award-winner has sent the internet into a tizzy with one of her posts. Last month, fans lived vicariously through a trip Larson took to Mexico with her Captain Marvel stunt double, and elsewhere campaigned for her to portray a live-action version of Tinkerbell after she stepped out in a fairy-like green dress. It remains to be seen whether such fanfare will arise during her run in Elektra, but it’s Brie Larson we’re talking about, so she’ll undoubtedly steal the show.