The 22 Most Influential and Iconic Sweaters in Film and TV

Sweater weather is upon us! Let's celebrate by looking back at the most iconic pop culture knits through the years

01 of 22

Marilyn Monroe's Sweater in Let's Make Love

Marilyn Monroe Let's Make Love
Bettmann/Getty

The bombshell's light purple cable knit and black tights look while singing the song "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" continues to be one of her most memorable ever.

02 of 22

Cary Grant's Striped Sweater in To Catch a Thief

To catch a thief Cary Grant
Paramount Pictures/Collection Christophel/Alamy

The legendary actor's classic stripes paired perfectly with a silk scarf in the 1955 film.

03 of 22

Faye Dunaway's Short-Sleeve Sweater in Bonnie and Clyde

BONNIE AND CLYDE, Faye Dunaway
Courtesy Everett Collection

The actress's wardrobe in this 1967 film, in which she played one half of the infamous killer couple, remains one of the all-time best.

04 of 22

Mr. Rogers' Red Cardigan

Image
Everett

Just looking at Fred Rogers' signature cardigan makes us smile.

05 of 22

Velma's Sweater on Scooby Doo

SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU?, Velma Dink
Courtesy Everett Collection

Jinkies! That chunky orange turtleneck sweater is synonymous with solving mysteries, but there's no mystery when it comes to this look — Velma knew what color worked for her and stuck to it.

06 of 22

Olivia Newton-John's Sunny Cardigan in Grease

Grease Olivia Newton-John
Olivia Newton-John in Grease. CBS via Getty

Tell me more, tell me more about how much you love Sandy's yellow cardigan — which matched her skirt and her blonde hair! — in the 1978 musical.

07 of 22

Angela Bassett's Cream Cardigan in Waiting to Exhale

Angela Bassett Waiting to Exhale
Courtesy Everett Collection

If you didn't think cardigans could be badass, let us present the scene of Bassett lighting a car on fire in an act of revenge against her cheating husband. The defense rests.

08 of 22

Meg Ryan & Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally

When Harry Met Sally Meg Ryan Billy Crystal
Castle Rock/Nelson/Columbia/Kobal/Shutterstock

There's so much to love about the complementary sweaters that Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal wear in the beloved rom-com. Who could blame Sally for falling for Harry when he rocks such a good chunky knit?

09 of 22

This Striped Sweater That Haunts Our Dreams

Nightmare On Elm Street
New Line/Kobal/Shutterstock

Horizontal stripes terrify us to this day thanks to Freddy Krueger's striped sweater from Nightmare on Elm Street.

10 of 22

The Off-the-Shoulder Sweatshirt in Flashdance

Flashdance Jennifer Beals
Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

What a feeling! The asymmetrical gray sweatshirt that Jennifer Beals wore in Flashdance perfectly represents all things '80s.

11 of 22

Drew Barrymore's Sweater in Scream

Scream Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore in Scream (1996). David M Moir/Miramax/Kobal/Shutterstock

Barrymore made her big comeback in 1996's Scream — and famously lasted all of 12 minutes on screen. No matter, this sweater still made an impact! So much so that Barrymore wore it again for a spoof on the film in October 2020.

12 of 22

This Ugly Christmas Sweater in Bridget Jones's Diary

Colin Firth Bridget Jones's Diary
Moviestore/Shutterstock

We love anything Colin Firth wears, but his character Mark Darcy's reindeer sweater lives in our heads rent-free.

13 of 22

Harry & Ron's Christmas Sweaters

Harry Potter and the sorcerer's stone Daniel Radcliffe
Collection Christophel/Alamy

These sweaters from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone made us wish that we went to Hogwarts and got homemade crewnecks from Mrs. Weasley for Christmas.

14 of 22

Ross's (and Tag's) Red Sweater in Friends

David Schwimmer Friends The One with the Red Sweater
NBC

Sure, it made the wearer look like they had randomly placed sweat stains — but it was also the clue that got everybody talking about who Rachel's baby daddy was.

15 of 22

Liv Tyler's Cropped Sweater in Empire Records

Empire Records Liv Tyler
James Bridges/Monarchy/Regency/Kobal/Shutterstock

The entirety of Corey Mason's (played by Liv Tyler) outfit herefrom the plaid miniskirt to the cropped sweater — is making a comeback. And for good reason!

16 of 22

Jeff Bridge's Sweater in The Big Lebowski

THE BIG LEBOWSKI, Jeff Bridges
Gramercy Pictures/courtesy Everett Collection

The Dude's patterned sweater from the 1998 comedy is so iconic, even Aaron Rodgers wore it.

17 of 22

The Striped Sweater in Spongebob Squarepants

SpongeBob Squarepants The Striped Sweater Song
Nickeldeon

As Spongebob Squarepants once said, "The best time to wear a striped sweater is all the time."

18 of 22

Damian's Hoodie in Mean Girls

Daniel Franzese Mean Girls
Paramount Pictures

On Wednesdays, we're supposed to wear pink, but we'd rather wear this disguise that Damian (Daniel Franzese) wore to shout, "She doesn't even go here!" in 2004's Mean Girls.

19 of 22

This Multi-Colored Sweater in Love Actually

Andrew Lincoln Love Actually
Universal Pictures

Love Actually has good and bad romances and good and bad "jumpers," but this one worn by Andrew Lincoln is probably the worst offender.

20 of 22

Andy's Sweater in The Devil Wears Prada

The Devil Wears Prada Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada. 20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock

The sweater (worn by Anne Hathaway) is — say it with us — "not just blue, it's not turquoise, it's not lapis, it's actually cerulean."

21 of 22

Killmonger's Killer Cardigan in Black Panther

Michael B. Jordan Black Panther
Michael B. Jordan in Black Panther. Marvel/© Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

We know he's supposed to be a villain in this movie, but we're convinced there's not a sweater in the world that Michael B. Jordan couldn't make look great.

22 of 22

Chris Evans' Perfect Cable Knit in Knives Out

Evans stars as ‘Ransom’ in KNIVES OUT
Chris Evans in Knives Out. Claire Folger/Lionsgate

This sweater and Chris Evans have something in common: They're both made of boyfriend material. The fisherman style he wore as Ransom is so great that it went viral — and the star got a matching one for his dog!

Related Articles