It was no surprise to see Career Opportunities actress Jennifer Connelly at the 6th Biennial UNICEF Ball held at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel. Mariah Carey, Nicole Kidman, Selena Gomez, and Michelle Rodriguez were also at the event.
Jennifer Connelly shines in a custom red sequined Louis Vuitton gown with cold-shoulder detailing at the 6th Biennial UNICEF Ball (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
Before her role in Career Opportunities, Jennifer Connelly made her film acting debut in the 1984 crime film Once Upon a Time in America. She also appeared in the 1985 horror film Phenomena and the 1986 musical fantasy film Labyrinth.
Starring in Career Opportunities as the affluent but mistreated Josie McClellan, she falls in love with an overnight janitor named Jim Dodge (Frank Whaley) at a local Target store.
Frank Whaley as Jim Dodge and Jennifer Connelly as Josie McClellan in Career Opportunities (Credit: Universal Pictures)
The movie was shot at a Target store at 4000 Covington Highway in Decatur, just outside Atlanta. Principal photography began on November 13, 1989, when Jennifer Connelly was 18.
Frank Whaley and Jennifer Connelly were 26 and 18 when they started filming Career Opportunities (Credit: Universal Pictures)
Film critics panned the American romantic comedy, released on March 29, 1991, and was a box office disappointment. The movie was also criticized for a sexualized scene featuring Connelly riding a mechanical horse in the store.
Jennifer Connelly told Rolling Stone in August 1991 that she regretted that scene: “One of my professors came up to me at school and said, ‘Jennifer, Jennifer, I went to the movies the other day and I saw this…poster of you. This sort of…mechanical poster of you. This sort of…life-size mechanical poster of you.’ Now I’d never seen this poster, but some of my friends told me about this…thing that was prominently on display in Cinema One Too Many where Career Opportunities was playing. As my friends explained it, you see me rocking back and forth on a mechanical horse, and then you see the face of Frank Whaley [her love interest in the movie], and the ad line goes something like ‘He’s about to have the ride of his life!’ Now, I don’t know about anyone else, but that wasn’t something I felt all that comfortable about. That sure as hell wasn’t a subject that I was dying to learn about from my professor.”
Jennifer Connelly wears a sexy tank top while riding a mechanical horse in Career Opportunities (Credit: Universal Pictures)
When an event involves Louis Vuitton, you can bet you’ll see the actress in full LV gear. As expected, Jennifer wore a custom sequined Louis Vuitton gown.
Jennifer Connelly wears a custom red Louis Vuitton dress on the blue carpet (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
The bright red cold-shoulder gown featured embellishments along the collarbone and sleeves. Joined by her husband, English-American actor Paul Bettany, her floor-length dress also featured a mock-neck design and a thigh-high slit.
Jennifer Connelly stuns in a red sequined Louis Vuitton gown with a thigh-high slit, accompanied by her husband Paul Bettany at the 6th Biennial UNICEF Ball at Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel on January 12, 2016, in Beverly Hills, California (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
She also paired her custom creation with lace-up booties and a clutch by the same brand. Even her rings were from Louis Vuitton.
Jennifer Connelly wears a full Louis Vuitton ensemble, including a dress, boots, rings, and clutch (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
Jennifer’s Oxford-style Louis Vuitton booties featured heels and a lace-up design.
Jennifer Connelly completes her Louis Vuitton ensemble with a bold, striped clutch and matching statement rings (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
We love the shoes but don’t think they go with her dress. She should have picked a different pair.
Jennifer Connelly pairs her sequined Louis Vuitton gown with sleek black lace-up Louis Vuitton booties featuring a metallic cap toe (Credit: FayesVision / Charlie Steffens / WENN)
At the gala, Jennifer Connelly and her husband, Paul Bettany, participated in the #MadeAPromise initiative to help children in need. Other celebrities, such as Selena Gomez, Alyssa Milano, Miranda Kerr, and Mariah Carey, also made a promise at the event.