Red carpet fashion in 2000 was largely overshadowed by the revealing green Versace dress worn by Jennifer Lopez for February's Grammy awards, which became one of the most talked-about and widely publicised red-carpet dresses of the year. For the 57th Golden Globe Awards Halle Berry borrowed a glamorous Valentino dress, that was described as setting the standard for Golden Globe red carpet style, and according to Phillip Bloch, her stylist at the time, "began the time when a dress could actually make a career."

One of the most widely publicised red carpet outfits in 2001 was the distinctive swan dress worn by the singer Björk to the Oscars. The September 11 attacks and outbreak of the War in Afghanistan led to the postponement of the Emmys until November 4, when a subdued ceremony was held, with attendees asked to wear suits. This was the first time that such a request had been made of attendees of a major award ceremony since the 1942 Oscars followed the attack on Pearl Harbor.