Michelle Yeoh went totally unsleeved for her recent Wicked: For Good media tour that culminated in a curious bra top for the Jimmy Fallon show

Michelle Yeoh (杨紫琼, Yang Ziqiong) has been embracing major fashion for the Wicked: For Good media tour, which ended in New York City a day ago. For that last leg of a 5-city charm offensive, Ms Yeoh was puffed-up in a chartreuse, tulle frustum by Givenchy that was really a radioactive bridal veil that gave up on being a complete dress. It was worn to out-illuminate the entire cast. Before that, she topped it off—literally—with a bra top on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The brassiere was so unexpected that Mr Fallon was only able to offer “you look great”, which roughly translated to I have no idea what season or decade this is. What else could he have said about her strategic regression to inner wear?

But it wasn’t just any bra. It was (also) by Givenchy, full-cupped, fairly pointy, skin-coloured, and had a Fifties air about it, something Marion Cunningham might have worn to see her son Ritchie off to school. As the camera, having zoomed past all dignity, settled on her face and chest, we noticed that the fit of the bra was a bit off, as if she had purchased it based on the horoscope for her cup size. Where the bust points were, were two dimples, precisely where the bra lost its will to live. Why the tiny inversion on a natural convex form, barely filled? She wore the undergarment with a black, asymmetric skirt that sat very, very high above her natural waist, with a slit in the front. The vertical opening allowed her to show one bare limb. Was the leg distraction compensating for the area further north that had achieved negative volume?

The fit of the bra was a bit off, as if she had purchased it based on the horoscope for her cup size

Even in Singapore, where she and the rest of the cast appeared at Universal Studios theme park (marred by a prankster), she too tried to make an impression. She wore an Iris van Herpen gown with a low, revealing bustier top that revealed almost nothing. You see a plunge, but no cleavage. Equatorial weather-friendly nonetheless. And the brown skirt—sheer, voluminous, and built around a 3-D honeycomb structure—was a silhouette more associated with Ariana Grande than she who played Madame Morrible. Many described it as “ethereal”. It’s the good ’ol standby when you’re too polite to say “WTF,” too lazy to say “structurally ambitious,” and too afraid to offer “this looks like a loofah”. The skirt might appear light, but it had texture and weight, and it was engineered, Calling it ethereal is like describing a termite mound as whimsical.

Ms Yeoh had, of course, bared her shoulders before, but for these past weeks on the go, from London (in an off-shoulder Self-Portrait) to New York through Singapore, it was a central theme. The looks weren’t incidental; they formed a deliberate, recurring motif across multiple cities. Even after she achieved post-Bond Girl fame, she was still not seen as much of a fashion star, more of a fashion background extra. But somehow, after her Oscar win, Balenciaga got into the picture, and she became Demna Gvasalia’s muse. That itself felt opportunistic than organic, but her Balenciaga was not yet part of a sustained dialogue. It was more a cameo than a collaboration. Michelle Yeoh’s public persona is built primarily on her physical power (her legacy as an action star) rather than a cerebral or artistic one (like an intellectual filmmaker or writer). She offered a physique that endured, but a fashion sense that’s theatrical and not yet coherent.

Photos: michelleyeoh_official/Instagram