Ella Bright’s New Hair Color Is Right On Trend for Fall 2026

As soon as it gets even a teeny bit chillier outside, the siren song of hair dye can be heard, luring you to take your existing color a few shades darker for the fall and winter. Off Campus star Ella Bright must have heeded the call, because she attended the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards (a.k.a. the VMAs) with a fresh new hair color that is right on time for October—and right on trend for the fall.

Bright, who plays Hannah Wells on the Amazon series, was already a brunette, but one with a much lighter hair color than the one she’s currently rocking. On the show and in real life, her hair was a mid-tone brown with a warm reddish tint, but at the VMAs, she changed it up in a big way with a dramatic, deep espresso that popped against her skin and pale blue eyes. Bright’s color du jour lands right between chocolate brown and black; it’s definitely brown, but did look almost black in some lights, it’s that dark! She wore it parted in the middle and styled in soft waves falling just past her collarbone, and her soft maple-brown lip color enhanced the warmth of the shade.

And like we said above, Bright’s updated hair color is perfectly aligned with autumnal color trends. Indulgent, rich dark chocolate was one of the top color trends spotlighted by pros for the season. “It’s about creating that richness, reflection, and incredible shine,” Richy Kandasamy, a New York City-based hairstylist and vice president of color development for R+Co, previously told Allure. “Ask your colorist for a rich, dimensional brunette that reflects light and looks glossy, not flat or overly dark.” Bright isn’t the only star who recently went dark, either; Hailey Bieber has been sporting a much darker brunette too.

We know that Off Campus season two is already done filming, so Bright’s dark hair probably won’t pop up in the show, but hey, anything is possible! Maybe we’ll see Hannah go to the dark side in season three. Fingers crossed!

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