On Day 3 of the 77th Cannes Film Festival, South Sudanese model Mitchell Akat Maruko Raan delivered a red carpet moment that will be etched in the festival’s fashion history.
Dressed in a breathtaking Harvey Cenit couture gown titled Wrath of Medusa, Raan turned heads as she arrived at the premiere of The Grand Tour.
The custom creation, designed by Filipino couturier Harvey Cenit, fused dramatic mythology with regal elegance. The gown featured a sculptural black velvet bodice that molded perfectly to Raan’s silhouette, paired with a flowing gold-plated cape that shimmered under the Mediterranean sun. The look was inspired by the mythical Greek figure Medusa, reimagined not as a villain, but as a symbol of strength, allure, and defiance.
“The dress speaks to transformation, mythology, and power,” said Raan in a brief interview on the Croisette. “It’s a statement about embracing complexity, beauty and danger, softness and resilience. I wanted to wear something that tells a story.”
Raan, who has been steadily rising in international fashion circles, has made Cannes her personal runway in recent years. But this Harvey Cenit design elevated her appearance to new heights. With minimal jewelry, her makeup palette featured bronze tones to echo the metallic accents of the cape, while her hair was styled in soft waves that offered contrast to the gown’s structured drama.
The ensemble was widely praised by fashion critics and social media users alike. Notably, Red Carpet Fashion Awards described the look as “an embodiment of mythical couture with a fierce feminist edge.” The gown has already landed Raan on multiple “Best Dressed” lists, including features in 10 Magazine and The Free Press Journal.
Cenit, known for his architectural silhouettes and affinity for storytelling through fashion, explained that the dress was “about reclaiming mythologies that were once used to shame women and turning them into armor.”
As fashion and film continue to collide at Cannes, Mitchell Akat Maruko Raan has emerged not just as a model, but as a modern muse, a presence who knows how to merge sartorial spectacle with narrative power. With Wrath of Medusa, she didn’t just walk the carpet, she owned it.
