Lady Gaga Pulled Another Dazzling Visual 180 With Her New Rust-Red Bob

From the moment it was announced that Lady Gaga would star in Joker: Folie à Deux, fans started anticipating the promotional cycle. After 15 years as a top pop star — and a more recent, very successful crossover into movies — it’s clear that Gaga doesn’t half-heartedly do anything. If she’s performing at the VMAs, she’s doing so suspended from the ceiling and covered in fake blood. If she’s playing Patrizia Reggiani, she’s going to live with an Italian accent for a year. And if she’s doing the Joker movie, she’s going to make a splash in the world’s biggest magazine with a totally new look. Gaga’s red bob, the star of her new Vogue cover, is exactly the sort of edgy-glamorous look you’d expect from the artist. But sit with the photos for a few minutes and you might notice that it all feels like an homage to her latest role, which could turn out to be her biggest one yet.

On the cover, Gaga poses with her head turned to look directly into the camera lens, her body covered in sapphire-blue feathers. She’s wearing canary eyeshadow with a black mascara teardrop trailing down her face and a short, damp-looking red bob. It's a striking combination of colors and textures, and it feels very much aligned with what fans know about the film so far.

One of the first shots published of Gaga in her Joker role, in which she plays opposite Joaquin Phoenix, shows her standing in what looks like an elevator with a soaking wet bob (albeit a platinum blonde one) with black clown-style makeup streaking down her face.

Her look on the Vogue cover feels like an extension of or a reference to that first glimpse of her in the film, but punched up with eye-grabbing colors. Even the shades chosen, though, feel very intentional. The Joker character, of course, dresses up in a clown costume, and some of the most famous clowns in history are depicted with red hair. Gaga's shade is a bold and exaggerated one, but it's also pretty aligned with the fall beauty trends experts are predicting for this year. Think rich, deep colors made to feel especially edgy.

Gaga's Joker sequel press tour only just started and she's already served up several instantly-iconic looks — expect something even bigger closer to the movie's October 4 release date, too.