Popsugar Fashion Celebrity Fashion What the Cape Dress Fashion Trend Means For Women in 2020 The Cape Dress: The Defiant Design Detail That Won Over Selena Gomez and Meghan Markle 20 March 2020 by Kara Kia Image Source: Getty / Gareth Cattermole Fashion always tells a story, and if we read the subtle cues of design, we can figure out what a garment is really saying. The cape dress is no exception. Worn by the likes of Selena Gomez, Meghan Markle, and Natalie Portman, this defiant design detail will be all over this year's red carpets. While puff-sleeve dresses started out strong for 2020 — being the most popular design silhouette at the 2020 Golden Globes — the cape dress is posing some serious competition. Selena wore a pink Patou cape dress to the 2020 Hollywood Beauty Awards while pushing press for her comeback album Rare. Meghan also wore a cape dress recently — two of them, as a matter of fact. The Duchess of Sussex wore a red Safiyaa gown to the 2020 Mountbatten Festival of Music and a green Emilia Wickstead number to the 2020 Commonwealth Day Service, significant choices for her final rounds as a senior royal. Natalie also wore a Dior cape dress as a silent protest against the 2020 Academy Awards snubbing women directors. It seems that when these celebrities wore a cape dress for a public appearance, it was a display of strength and support for themselves or fellow women. Natalie was showing defiance against the patriarchy, Meghan was giving the monarchy a dignified farewell, and Selena was reminding her fans that despite her health complications, she isn't going anywhere. Ahead, take a closer look at the sartorial superwomen who are bringing the cape dress to the red carpet. Related: Boudoir Fashion Is the Romantic Spring Trend That Has Us Dreaming of a Walk-In Closet Selena Gomez at the 2020 Hollywood Beauty Awards Image Source: Getty / Tibrina Hobson Selena Gomez wore a pink Patou cape dress to the 2020 Hollywood Beauty Awards. 1 / 8 Selena Gomez at the 2020 Hollywood Beauty Awards Image Source: Getty / Tibrina Hobson 2 / 8 Meghan Markle at the Commonwealth Day Service 2020 Image Source: Getty / Gareth Cattermole Meghan Markle wore a green Emilie Wickstead cape dress for her final engagement as a senior royal family member. 3 / 8 Meghan Markle at the Commonwealth Day Service 2020 Image Source: Getty / Chris Jackson 4 / 8 Meghan Markle at the 2020 Mountbatten Festival of Music Image Source: Getty / Karwai Tang Meghan Markle wore a red Safiyaa cape dress to the 2020 Mountbatten Festival of Music. 5 / 8 Meghan Markle at the 2020 Mountbatten Festival of Music Image Source: Getty / Karwai Tang 6 / 8 Natalie Portman at the 2020 Academy Awards Image Source: Getty / Steve Granitz Natalie Portman wore a black Dior cape dress embroidered with the names of snubbed women directors to the 2020 Academy Awards. 7 / 8 Natalie Portman at the 2020 Academy Awards Image Source: Getty / Kevin Mazur 8 / 8 Celebrity FashionThe RoyalsFashion TrendsSaifyaaPatouSpring Fashion 2020Meghan MarkleThe British RoyalsEmilia WicksteadSpring Fashion