There is no doubt that The Simple Life, starring BFFs Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, defined a generation—with its absurdly unrelatable but hilarious storyline, its iconic nepo-baby stars, and its peak Y2K fashion. So. Much. Fashion. Now, Hilton is giving us a cultural reset by re-creating one of her most unforgettable looks from the reality series.
In a video ad for her new Tan Luxe self-tanner, Hilton invited two AI versions of herself—one from the past and one from the future—to help her come up with an “iconic” tagline for her product. While futuristic Paris appears in a sculpted pink minidress, early-2000s Paris emerges from another dimension looking incredible in a blue denim minidress with a lace-up bodice and pleated miniskirt, as well as a matching denim choker with a large red rosette on one side. She even carried a hot pink Razr for extra nostalgia.
Fans quickly noticed the outfit is a modern version of the full denim look Hilton wore in an image for The Simple Life (which was itself a spoof of the classic painting American Gothic, by Grant Wood): a lace-up corset top with a matching choker, and a pleated micro miniskirt with brown buttons.
Somehow, 20 years later, Hilton still completely slayed the look. On her Instagram Story, she reposted an image shared by a fan account of the outfits side by side. No caption needed.
At the end of the video, the Parises come up with just the right tagline for the tanning spray: “The future looks good on you.” “Hot,” one Paris says. “Sliving,” the other agrees.
Rosa Sanchez is the senior news editor at Harper's Bazaar, working on news as it relates to entertainment, fashion, and culture. Previously, she was a news editor at ABC News and, prior to that, a managing editor of celebrity news at American Media. She has also written features for Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue, Forbes, and The Hollywood Reporter, among other outlets.
