--- title: Why Billy Porter Wore a Gown to the 2019 Oscars description: Billy Porter stole the show at the 2019 Oscars red carpet when he showed up in a black tuxedo gown by Christian Siriano. canonical: https://time.com/5537621/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-02-25T23:06:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:57:42.575Z og:title: Why Billy Porter Wore a Gown to the 2019 Oscars og:description: "What is masculinity? What does that mean?" og:url: https://time.com/5537621/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte15bd19af2451656/698945dc929fadfc98bf2c73/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2000 og:image:height: 1125 og:image:alt: 91st Annual Academy Awards - Arrivals og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why Billy Porter Wore a Gown to the 2019 Oscars twitter:description: "What is masculinity? What does that mean?" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte15bd19af2451656/698945dc929fadfc98bf2c73/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Here's Why Billy Porter Wore That Remarkable Gown to the 2019 Oscars > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Feb 25, 2019 11:06 PM UTC  HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 24: Billy Porter attends the 91st Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on February 24, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 24: Billy Porter attends the 91st Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on February 24, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) Frazer Harrison—Getty Images  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Feb 25, 2019 11:06 PM UTC [_Pose_](http://time.com/5296664/ryan-murphy-pose/)star Billy Porter stole the show at the [91st Academy Awards](http://time.com/5535474/oscars-2019-records/) when he showed up on the Oscars red carpet in a tuxedo jacket and a velvet gown by designer Christian Siriano. Porter, who changed into a pair of palazzo pants for practicality while he was doing job as an interviewer, wore the dress with a pair of 6″ tall Rick Owens boots The actor and singer, who helped host the red carpet coverage ahead of the awards show, opened up about his decision to don a dress for the occasion in an essay for [_Vogue_](https://www.vogue.com/article/billy-porter-oscars-red-carpet-gown-christian-siriano), where he talked about his love of fashion, his queer identity and the need for visibility. “My goal is to be a walking piece of political art every time I show up. To challenge expectations. What is masculinity? What does that mean? Women show up every day in pants, but the minute a man wears a dress, the seas part,” Porter said. He later revealed that his decision to wear a dress to the 2019 Oscars was inspired by the shocked responses he got after sporting a pink cape to the 2019 Golden Globes. “That Globes outfit changed everything for me. I had the courage to push the status quo,” he said. “I believe men on the red carpet would love to play more. This industry masquerades itself as inclusive, but actors are afraid to play, because if they show up as something outside of the status quo, they might be received as feminine, and, as a result, they won’t get that masculine job, that superhero job. And that’s the truth. I’ve been confronted with that.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5537621/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5537621/billy-porter-dress-oscars-2019/"},"headline":"Here's Why Billy Porter Wore That Remarkable Gown to the 2019 Oscars","datePublished":"2019-02-25T23:06:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:57:42.575Z","description":"\"What is masculinity? 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