Please Remember Sandra Bullock As a Nineties Fashion Icon
Many hella tight staples of the nineties have come and gone — including pogs, parachute pants, and “Here Comes the Hotstepper” — and yet Sandra Bullock endures, her star burning just as brightly now (as her new film The Heat hits theaters) as it did in 1994 when Speed thrust her into the public eye. Superstardom looked a little different then, though: It was a time before personal stylists, a time when it was totally acceptable and even awesome for an A-list actress to hit the red carpet looking like a featured extra from Reality Bites. If you’ve forgotten how Sandra Bullock dressed in the nineties — or just forgotten the nineties entirely — let this celebratory slideshow get you up to speed on Bullock’s early years on the red carpet. You’ll be trippin’. Trust.
Want to know why Sandra Bullock is such a style trendsetter? This whole look is something Samuel L. Jackson would wear now.
Photo: Ron Galella
Stick a glow stick in her hand, and this ensemble is ready for night.
Photo: Jim Smeal
Number of awesomely nineties outfits in this slideshow: 15. Number of Sassy covers Sandra Bullock earned in the nineties: Zero. That's criminal.
Phot...Number of awesomely nineties outfits in this slideshow: 15. Number of Sassy covers Sandra Bullock earned in the nineties: Zero. That's criminal.
Photo: Ron Galella
When your date is Matthew McConaughey and he's dressed in leather pants (to the Teen Choice Awards!), you can get away with wearing a Wet Seal ensembl...
When your date is Matthew McConaughey and he's dressed in leather pants (to the Teen Choice Awards!), you can get away with wearing a Wet Seal ensemble while padding through the red carpet barefoot, shoes in hand. No one will even notice.
Courtney Love wishes.
Photo: Jim Smeal
Most actresses would go to their premiere wearing something sleek and slinky, but for the debut of Hope Floats in 1998, Sandra Bullock bravely came ou...
Most actresses would go to their premiere wearing something sleek and slinky, but for the debut of Hope Floats in 1998, Sandra Bullock bravely came out of the closet as a female wizard with great hair.
One bright spot in Arrested Development's uneven fourth season: Sandra Bullock's quicksilver timing as Lucille Austero.
We had the same look on our face when we saw this picture! (Dear reader, don't overlook the shoes.)
Photo: Ron Galella
Even when Speed appeared to be taking off, Sandra Bullock still had a fallback plan: appearing on season one of The Real World as Julie.
Photo: Ron G...Even when Speed appeared to be taking off, Sandra Bullock still had a fallback plan: appearing on season one of The Real World as Julie.
Photo: Ron Galella
You may have forgotten, but for a brief shining moment in 1999, Sandra Bullock transformed into the Hindu god Vishnu, the Supreme Being as declared by...
You may have forgotten, but for a brief shining moment in 1999, Sandra Bullock transformed into the Hindu god Vishnu, the Supreme Being as declared by the Bhagavad Gita. She was miserable.
Pop quiz: Sandra Bullock or Sue Mengers?
Photo: Ron Galella
Exposed midriffs were all the rage in the nineties, and Sandy B did her part to keep that trend going above 55mph at all times. Consider the evidence ...
Exposed midriffs were all the rage in the nineties, and Sandy B did her part to keep that trend going above 55mph at all times. Consider the evidence …
More midriff. Harry Connick Jr. juts his little belly out in solidarity.
You're going to be distracted by several things about this picture, but again, we note: more midriff.
More mid … whoa. Can we get a closer look at that outfit? (Outta the way, Happy Gilmore.)
Ladies and gentlemen, this whole ensemble is why nineties Sandra Bullock is your spirit animal. She is the bomb. She is dope. She is all that and a ba...
Ladies and gentlemen, this whole ensemble is why nineties Sandra Bullock is your spirit animal. She is the bomb. She is dope. She is all that and a bag of chips. She is Sandra Bullock, superstar.