Vanessa Kirby Is Lancôme’s Newest Global Ambassador

PARIS — British actress and producer Vanessa Kirby has been named Lancôme’s new global ambassador.

“My earliest memory is of my mother carrying Lancôme products in the bathroom,” says Kirby, a BAFTA award-winning actress and Emmy, Golden Globe and Academy award nominee. “I always thought: ‘Oh, that’s what my mom used.’ So it was absolutely surreal to be asked to be an ambassador, and I was honored, because for me, it’s in my history.

“The history of the brand and its legacy – all the women over the years who have used it in their daily lives – there is something that feels very intimate, very special to me personally,” she continued.

Kirby is known for his work spanning film, television, and stage. She played Princess Margaret in Netflix’s “The Crown,” and Martha in “Piece of a Woman,” for example. Most recently, Kirby starred in “The Night Always Comes,” which he also produced.

Kirby is an advocate for children’s rights, especially in high-conflict areas.

For him, Lancôme represents optimism. This brand has inspired Kirby because he thinks the women in the brand are very natural. “It was a woman in her natural state, her everyday state,” he said.

Kirby explained that as a new mother, she feels different now. “I have less time, so I need things that I can rely on and trust so that they feel good and walk out feeling natural and more carefree in some ways,” said Kirby, adding that this new role at Lancôme fits a different phase in her life, and that the brand represents the type of woman she hopes her children will be.

Beauty for Kirby is how she feels inside and learning what makes her feel good. “It goes back to the things that made me feel centered in the first place,” he said. “Lancôme feels like an everyday woman, that’s where I feel my best.”

Kirby said she was honored to have joined a long legacy of Lancôme ambassadors who have inspired women for her. He calls it “the essence of the brand.”

“I hope I can make them proud,” Kirby said. “I have an authentic relationship with it [Lancôme] because of my mother, and I will take her.”

Vania Lacascade, global brand president of Lancôme at L’Oréal, said for the heritage brand, every decision regarding ambassadors must be meaningful. “So we’re not just looking for the face,” he explained. “We are looking for faith, meaning. What immediately struck me when I met Vanessa was her depth.

“He approaches his heart, his roles, the way he portrays his characters from the inside out,” Lacascade continued. “He has this emotional intelligence, this curiosity.”

Kirby can convey vulnerability and strength simultaneously, according to Lacascade, who said: “It’s very Lancôme. He embodies what we call ‘sophisticated vulnerability.'”

That’s how women feel today – not only are they powerful but also have an unapologetic authenticity, according to the executive.

Kirby will appear in various campaigns. In addition to other ambassadors, including recently nominated Christy Turlington Burns, Kirby will also be featured in Teint Idole Ultra Wear liquid foundation and a new Shape Sticks ad.

Alongside Ni Ni, Kirby will appear in the L’Absolu Rouge Glaze Tintation campaign, billed as a next-generation lipstick that combines shimmer, blush and revitalizing care.

The campaign will kick off early this month in Asia, followed in May for Ultra Wear in Europe and the United States, and in September for Rouge Glaze.

“Vanessa is a face that we will use extensively in the brand,” said Lacascade, explaining: “She represents a modern, evolving femininity that brings a lot to our collection of spokespeople. She brings this very important underlying meaning.

“We believe that modern femininity is plural,” Lacascade continues. “So you could say Vanessa joins Christy, joins Isabella [Rossellini]joins Julia [Roberts]joins Olivia [Rodrigo]this reinforces the message that beauty is universal, diverse, and usually related to personal growth.”