Reuters
WEST HOLLYWOOD
The $150,000 pearl-studded, custom-made Calvin Klein dress worn by Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o at this year’s Academy Awards has been stolen, police said.
The gown, embellished with 6,000 natural white pearls, was stolen from Nyong’o’s room at the London Hotel in West Hollywood, during the day on Wednesday, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in West Hollywood said.
‘Ms Nyong’o was not in the room at the time of the theft,’ Deputy John Mitchell told Reuters. The Calvin Klein dress, custom designed by Francisco Costa, was one of the stand-outs on the red carpet at last Sunday’s Oscars. Nyong’o told Reuters she had helped with the design of the one-of-a-kind gown, influenced by the ocean. Nyong’o, 31, won a best supporting actress Oscar in 2014 for her role in ‘12 Years a Slave’ and is closely watched for her fashion choices. She presented the award for best supporting actor at this year’s Oscars ceremony. Representatives for Calvin Klein declined to comment. Moreover, Sheriff’s deputies responded to call from a West Hollywood hotel after the custom dress was reported missing from the hotel room of the actress, sheriff’s Sgt. Richard Bowman said. Nyong’o was present when deputies took the report, but she wasn’t in her room when the elaborate gown was taken, Bowman said. Her publicists said they would not comment on the theft.
Representatives for the actress reported the theft. Detectives suspect the garment was taken sometime between 8 and 9pm. Wednesday, sheriff’s Lt. William Nash said. Detectives were at the hotel Thursday looking for clues, including surveillance video that might reveal what happened. Nyong’o won an Oscar in 2014 for her role in ‘Twelve Years a Slave’ and was a presenter at Sunday’s ceremony.
The 31-year-old actress has become a darling of Hollywood’s red carpets in the past two years, with commenters and fans praising her fashion choices. She accessorized the dress with Chopard diamond drop earrings and three Chopard diamond rings. Before the awards ceremony, Nyong’o told The Associated Press on the red carpet, ‘I’m just wearing my diamonds and pearls. My homage to Prince,’ referring to a popular song by the musician.
Nyong’o told a reporter for Yahoo Style that she was involved in the design of the dress. ‘We talked about it being fluid and liquid,’ she told the site. ‘I wanted it to be an homage to the sea.’ A representative for Calvin Klein declined to comment. But late Thursday night, the fashion house did tweet a close-up photo of the dress, writing ‘have you seen this dress?’ with the hashtag ‘freethepearls.’