June 7, 2021: Sophie Turner has returned to her roots—kind of. The actress took to Instagram over the weekend to share her return to red hair. Naturally, the decision is taking over the internet, one reason being that some fans are convinced the hair change holds a hidden meaning.
Standing in her bathroom and hiding her face, Turner debuted a new shade somewhere between a gentle copper and a firey red while wearing a black “Sour” T-Shirt, showing that she, much like the rest of us, loves Olivia Rodrigo. No clue what the purpose of the change was boredom, a new job, etcetera—but the new hair color also comes just a week after the 25-year-old debuted bangs. In the unlikely case that you haven’t yet experienced her eye-grazing fringe, please do so below.
Turner became famous for her red hair during her time on Game of Thrones as well as during her time as Jean Grey in the X-Men series. The color appeared so natural that fans were shocked to learn Turner was actually born blonde and not with the fiery red that suited her so easily. “When I go back to my natural hair it’s exciting to separate myself from the characters that I’ve played,” Turner told Elle UK in 2017. “If my hair is blonde it means Game of Thrones is over, and X-Men is over, and I feel 12 years old all over again.”
So while we’re not entirely sure what Turner’s latest color change means, there’s no denying that it’s in for summer 2021. Celebrities across the globe are dying their hair red, and each one feels fitting and suited to the moment. In the past month, Ciara, Iggy Azalea, and Charlize Theron (kind of) have all dipped their toes into fire-hued strands, while Gigi Hadid and Sarah Hyland also blew our minds earlier in the year with their switcheroos.
NYC-based hair colorist Miranda Trunzo confirms that red is having a moment at the salon. “There have been a lot of requests for strawberry red highlights and golden highlight requests this summer,” she says of her clients at Broome Street Society. That said, it’s very possible that Turner was motivated by the trend. What do you think: Is this the true impact of Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen’s Gambit? We all gave up on trying to become chess champions, but we can still play around with trying to match her hair color—a much more fun game if you ask us.
