Dakota Johnson has been the unofficial ambassador for neutral, barely-there milky nails for as long as we can remember, but at last night’s VMA awards, she decided it was the perfect occasion to switch things up.
Offsetting her sheer, white, shimmery Valentino gown, Dakota tapped up a very ’50s-inspired tomato red manicure to keep things interesting. We saw the shade up close as Dakota arrived on stage to present the Artistic Director Honors Award to her friend (and recent collaborator) Taylor Swift.
Dakota Johnson en el Peacock Theater durante la entrega de MTV VMAs 2026.CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images
We know that Dakota’s on-stage bestie, Taylor, has been known to drop hints and easter eggs via her manicures, and we wonder if it’s rubbed off onto the actress, who’s nail polish colour was worthy of a showgirl.
Of course, the VMAs also marked the debut of Taylor Swift’s newest music video, Patient Zero (an encore to her The Life Of A Showgirl album), which featured Dakota and Taylor starring as the current and ex-girlfriends of an antagonist played by Colin Farrell. The two women watched the video get unveiled live on the VMAs stage.
Of course, red nail polish is synonymous with showgirls, having become a Hollywood staple since the ’20s. It’s also the team colour of Taylor’s new husband, Travis Kelce, and it’s a shade that Taylor has gravitated toward a lot herself recently. But, we’ve also seen celebrities like Hailey Bieber (who wore the colour at the Oscars Vanity Fair after-party earlier this year, sparking a surge in demand for red at nail salons) gravitate toward the classic shade.