… and Valentino has given them a suitably seductive soundtrack.
Casting a fragrance campaign is a bit like casting a romcom: it all comes down to chemistry. Valentino Beauty clearly knows it, because for its new fragrance duo, Vendetta, it has paired two of the most watchable actors around. Dakota Johnson and Alexander Skarsgard are the brand’s new global beauty ambassadors, and the on-screen result is as cinematic as you’d hope.
The perfumed pairing
Johnson, known for Fifty Shades of Grey, and Skarsgard, who has starred in Pillion and The Legend of Tarzan, play two lovers bound by instinct rather than convention. Valentino calls them partners in crime, and it frames the story as an “us-against-the-world” escape. Here’s a fun detail: the pair reportedly have known each other for around a decade but had never worked together until now, which might explain why the chemistry reads as effortless.
Johnson describes intimacy as being about honesty and connection, which is a neat fit for a launch built on emotional depth. Valentino’s pitch is that, at a time when love risks feeling performative or algorithmic, Vendetta is a return to something more instinctive.
The campaign
The two actors front Valentino Beauty’s new Vendetta fragrance duo, starring as lovers in a cinematic campaign shot by legendary fashion photographers Inez & Vinoodh.
The film was directed by Romain Gavras and shot on 35mm, with a soundtrack of the Pet Shop Boys’ “It’s a Sin”.
Think less traditional perfume ad, more impossibly good-looking couple disappearing from the world together.
The campaign taps into an “us-against-the-world” fantasy, with Johnson and Skarsgard playing two people connected by instinct rather than convention.
The premise? In an era of dating apps, algorithms and relationships that can sometimes feel suspiciously curated for social media, Vendetta is about choosing chemistry, intensity and connection instead.
Basically, if your idea of romance involves running away with an extremely attractive person and ignoring everyone else’s opinions, Valentino gets it.
The Scents
Vendetta Donna
Johnson’s fragrance is the more traditionally feminine half of the duo, but forget anything too delicate.
Vendetta Donna is a floral gourmand woody fragrance that master perfumers Dominique Ropion and Andrew Everett built around tuberose.
The tuberose takes centre stage in its most sensual form, using Valentino’s exclusive Tuberose Osmobloom extraction technology to heighten the flower’s creamy, luminous and skin-like qualities.
Then comes the fun part: red orange nectar.
Inspired by Italy’s Tarocco Rosso orange, the accord is juicy and syrupy with a salty edge, adding brightness and a slightly unexpected tension to the creamy white floral.
Sandalwood brings everything back down to earth, creating a warm, enveloping finish.
And because this is Valentino, the fragrance comes in a deep red bottle that feels like a visual shorthand for everything the campaign is selling: passion, heat and unapologetic romance.
Vendetta Uomo
Skarsgard gets the darker half of the story with Vendetta Uomo, a woody spicy gourmand created by master perfumer Marie Salamagne.
It opens with ginger CO2 from Peru and Italian citrus before moving into a Cinnamon Liquor Accord at the heart. Patchouli and modern carnal woods then give it a deeper, warmer finish.
It sounds like the fragrance equivalent of Skarsgard’s on-screen persona: polished, slightly dangerous and very difficult to ignore.
The campaign treats Donna and Uomo as two distinct personalities rather than matching scents, but the bottles are designed as a pair.
Both feature Valentino’s graphic V motif, while the pleated caps reference the folds of Valentino’s couture garments. Together, they look like they belong to the same beautifully dressed couple who have just disappeared for the weekend without telling anyone where they’re going.
The bottles
The two bottles are designed as a pair, with a bold graphic V motif and a pleated cap that nods to the folds of Valentino garments. Donna’s deep red hue echoes the house’s signature colour, so the juice doubles as part of the design.
A bit of Valentino history
The name isn’t new. It pays homage to a Vendetta fragrance introduced under founder Valentino Garavani in 1991, and this duo is Valentino Beauty’s first prestige fragrance franchise launch in six years. So this is both a new chapter and a nod to the archive.
