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Academy Awards: The best Oscars red carpet dresses of all time

The Oscars might be designed to celebrate the trailblazers in the film industry, but it’s also an opportunity for the world’s most famous screen stars to showcase their sartorial prowess on the red carpet.

Each year, the Oscars red carpet is fit to burst with A-listers dressed to impress. Celebrities, and their stylists, spend months planning their outfits, knowing that fans worldwide will be waiting to see what designer they wear.

While it’s difficult to nail down the most iconic Oscars dress of all time (we are on to the 94th edition of the awards this year, after all) many will forever remain etched in our minds.

Angelina Jolie‘s black sculptural and strapless Atelier Versace gown, is one obvious example. The actress hit headlines globally with her ‘leg-thrusting’ pose in her thigh-high split gown at the 2012 awards.

Hilary Swank’s blue, backless Guy Laroche dress worn to the 77th Academy Awards is another Oscars outfit that will go down in history. Cut to the base of the American star’s spine, the dress certainly packed a punch.

Jennifer Lawrence has taken to the Academy Awards red carpet in a number of award-winning gowns over the years, but we picked out a Calvin Klein number for this round-up. With its streamlined cut and fuss-free style, it proved that often less really is more.

And how could we forget the baby pink prom-esque Valentino dress Gwyneth Paltrow wore in 1999? It’s almost as infamous as the actress’ somewhat emotional acceptance speech, the same year, for her best actress accolade.

Other memorable dresses include Nicole Kidman’s 1997 Galliano for Dior gown and the semi-sheer number Halle Berry wore in 2002. And who could forget Madonna’s $20 million, diamond-encrusted Bob Mackie gown?

From long-reigning classics to more modern looks, we chart the best Oscars dresses of all time.