Hollywood’s best-dressed crowd headed up Sunset Boulevard on Thursday night, November 12, for GQ’s annual Men of the Year party at the Chateau Marmont, and the guest list stretched well beyond the movie business. Comedians, musicians, designers and a few of the biggest names in women’s sports all turned up for the 31st edition of the magazine’s year-end celebration.

Three hosts, five honorees

According to GQ, the night began with a private dinner honoring this year’s Men of the Year, followed by the party. Global editorial director Adam Baidawi hosted, joined by co-hosts Chris Rock, Andrew Garfield and Matt Damon.

The magazine is also honoring Celine creative director Michael Rider as Designer of the Year and Dune filmmaker Denis Villeneuve as Director of the Year. As Vogue put it, GQ was honoring “not one man but five” this year: Rock, Garfield, Damon, Rider and Villeneuve.

Benito Skinner, creator and star of Overcompensating, hosted the red carpet for GQ’s Instagram.

A three-night celebration

This year GQ stretched Men of the Year across three nights in Los Angeles. On Tuesday, November 10, the magazine hosted a Director of the Year screening for Villeneuve at the Lucas Museum of Narrative History, including a conversation with GQ’s Zach Baron and a screening of Dune: Part Two. On Wednesday, a Breakouts party at the Sheats-Goldstein residence in the Hollywood Hills celebrated 13 of the year’s rising actors, directors, comedians and podcasters. Thursday’s party at the Chateau was the finale.

Who showed up

The carpet was crowded. Vogue’s guest list included Jason Bateman, Joshua Jackson, Travis Scott, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Miguel, Diplo, Jimmy Kimmel, Emma Watson, Ayo Edebiri, Don Cheadle, Future, Chace Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Tracee Ellis Ross, Halle Bailey, Ice Spice, Tinashe and Zosia Mamet, among many others.

Sports had a strong presence too. WNBA star Angel Reese and Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles both walked the carpet, with The Root praising Chiles for making a suit look “even better on her than some of the menfolk.” Sports journalist Taylor Rooks was also there.

The looks

The Root highlighted a few standouts. Shaboozey stayed true to his country roots in all black with turquoise jewelry and a cowboy hat. Anderson .Paak went for a white pinstriped suit with a red silky shirt. Kendrick Sampson brought a pop of purple to a sea of black, while Tracee Ellis Ross arrived in a colorful ensemble with fun shoes. Halle Bailey wore all black with diamonds and emeralds, and Tinashe went for a sparkling brown dress.

Chris Rock, one of the night’s honorees and co-hosts, kept it classic. The Root noted that his new film, Misty Green, is now streaming on Netflix.

Moments from inside

Vogue’s Eileen Kelly reported that the red carpet was set up in the hotel’s garage, with servers carrying espresso martinis on silver platters as guests made their way upstairs.

One of the best stories of the night involved Villeneuve. Kelly described a young fan approaching the director on the patio to tell him that Blade Runner 2049 had changed his life and that he considered it “the best sequel ever made.” Villeneuve reportedly burst out laughing at the fan’s colorful description of how many times he had watched it.

Garfield spent part of the night at a patio table with his girlfriend, Monica Barbaro, while Anderson .Paak offered Kelly a quick answer to the question of what makes a man of the year: “A man of confidence, a leader, a listener, and a doer.”

Why it matters

GQ’s Men of the Year issue has become one of the season’s key culture markers, and the party is where Hollywood, music, fashion and sports collide in one room. With Villeneuve, Rock, Garfield and Damon all in the spotlight and athletes like Reese and Chiles mixing with movie stars, this year’s edition showed just how wide that circle has become.

The December issue featuring the honorees is out now on GQ’s website.

Image: ChateauMarmont 01 by Gary Minnaert (Minnaert)) via Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain Mark 1.0