Remember when Jennifer Garner’s ‘13 Going On 30’ character wore a colorful Versace party dress?

By Marie Lodi, CNN

(CNN) — After being humiliated on the night of her 13th birthday party, Jenna Rink wakes up as her adult self. Confused by her unfamiliar surroundings — a luxe apartment in Manhattan with a strange man calling her “Sweet Bottom” — she runs outside in her pink silk Carine Gilson nightgown, but not before grabbing a polka-dot Nanette Lepore coat, high heels and a silver sequin Fendi baguette (the first of many designer purses in the film). The impromptu ensemble is supposed to be a mistake, but it’s serendipitously chic and perfect for the character’s grown-up job as a fashion editor.

In the 2000s rom-com cinematic universe, being a writer or editor at a women’s magazine was perhaps the ultimate fantasy — and a popular narrative trope. Not only does such a character have a fabulous job and, inevitably, falls in love thanks to the most unexpected meet-cutes, but they also get to wear some pretty stylish outfits.

In “13 Going on 30,” one of the most beloved examples of the genre, costume designer Susie DeSanto meticulously curated a wardrobe for Jennifer Garner, who played the 30-year-old Rink, selecting designer pieces — from Miu Miu, Prada, Moschino, Chloé, Ralph Lauren, Roberto Cavalli and Versace, among others — as expected for an editor at Poise magazine, the film’s fictional counterpart to Cosmo or Vogue. “Fashion, at the time, was right in lockstep with what we were doing for the movie,” DeSanto told CNN in a phone call, noting that the colorful, feminine garments produced by many fashion designers helped depict Jenna’s young and optimistic point of view.

“I’d go into Barney’s, and it’d be like my 13-year-old brain saying, ‘If I had all the money in the world, what would I pick? Well, I’d pick this beautiful flower bustier, and I’d pick this and this,’” DeSanto explained. “It was just really about putting it together.”

The pièce de résistance: a Versace mini dress with rhinestone-embellished straps and a cutout empire waist, color-blocked in shades of turquoise, lime green, and maroon. The dress, a variation of a look featured in the fashion house’s Spring-Summer 2003 runway show, is highlighted when Jenna charms partygoers at a Poise event into performing a synchronized dance routine to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” DeSanto had a rack of different options during fittings for this scene, she remembered, but someone saw the dress in a magazine and that was that. However, it still proved hard to track down — Versace ended up sending it over from Italy.

DeSanto accessorized the dress with colorful Swarovski crystal jewelry by Tarina Tarantino, including a blue butterfly statement necklace. (Tarantino is also experiencing somewhat of a renaissance herself, having recently collaborated with Marc Jacobs’s Heaven line on a jewelry collection.)

There couldn’t have been a more perfect piece of party attire for Garner’s character — she’s a young girl seemingly transported to the early 00s from 1987, after all, a time when fashion was all about neon colors and short skirts. “There’s taste and maturity, but it’s naivete, it’s youthful… colorful and fun,” said DeSanto. “It’s going to be your party dress for a fun night out. Like when we used to wear Betsey Johnson tutus to the club — that kind of thinking.”

Decades later, the dress has become a beloved artifact for nostalgic rom-com fans and modern fashion enthusiasts alike. Its influence has gone beyond the silver screen, as Y2K fashionistas have scrambled to find the dress for ‘fit vids and Halloween parties — as well as a birthday look for those who want to live their own “thirty, flirty, and thriving” Jenna Rink fantasy. The actor Christa B. Allen, who played the young version of Jenna in the film, went viral on TikTok in 2020 after she wore a replica of the dress purchased from Etsy (it has also been duped by many a fast-fashion etailer) and recreated the film’s “getting ready” scene. In 2021, Ariana Grande wore the dress on an episode of “The Voice,” having also paid homage to the film in her 2018 music video for “Thank U, Next.”

Still, despite becoming such an iconic piece, the dress wasn’t considered the film’s most critical look. “It was just the dress that got picked,” recalled DeSanto, adding that many of the film’s producers weren’t even particularly interested in the party scene. “(Garner) put it on, we got her all dolled up, she went to dance, and we moved on,” she said. “We were busy.”

Over the years, DeSanto has worked with Garner on a total of eight films — the actor has referred to as her “partner in threads” — and is still amazed at the enduring appeal of 13 Going On 30. “It’s a phenomenon. Jen and I talk about this all the time, and we’re always gobsmacked,” she said. “I cannot tell you how many times I’ve been reached out to and asked, ‘Where can I get this, or where did you find that?’ We never even thought about it. We were just telling the story and having fun with it.”

(In “Yes Day,” a 2021 film that Garner and DeSanto worked on, Garner’s character wore the same pearl necklace that she’d worn as Rink in “13 Going On 30” as a sweet homage to the film.)

DeSanto also credits director Gary Winick, who died in 2011, for the film’s fashion sense. “Gary was this wonderful man who was very tuned to fashion because he had grown up in New York,” said DeSanto.” As a kid, he went to Bergdorf with (his mother) every Saturday, so he knew clothes.” Winick was also adamant about Mark Ruffalo’s character (Garner’s love interest) not wearing anything designer, DeSanto added, as it wouldn’t make sense for his character. “He’d say nope, you gotta go to the thrift store. He had the eye.”

Throughout the movie, Jenna’s outfits evolve from darker colors and structured elements to softer hues and feminine details. The growing confidence in her true identity that these wardrobe choices embody is part of the film’s message. As DeSanto points out, “13 Going on 30” is a story about a young woman coming into herself — and how, more than anything, it’s important just to be yourself.

“I think that resonates with young people,” she said. “And it always helps to tie it up in a nice, fancy package with a pretty bow on top, which is what the costumes and the setting do… That is what people hold onto.”

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