A lot of royal portraits might seem painfully stiff, but every so often, a royal figure turns up who looks like they belong on a catwalk, not in a palace.
Hollywood went royal
You might be surprised to know that Hollywood star Grace Kelly was also a princess. Yes, she became Princess Grace of Monaco after marrying Prince Rainier III in 1956. Kelly had already spent years being photographed from every possible angle before becoming part of the monarchy.
She’d even won an Oscar. Yes, Kelly had that very 1950s combination of blonde hair and pale skin, along with blue eyes and perfectly cut clothes. It’s almost like she was born to be a princess, honestly.
The face that changed with the decade
It wouldn’t be a royal list without Princess Diana. She was only 20 when she married Prince Charles. She had rounded cheeks and feathered blonde hair, along with those huge blue eyes that photographed extremely well. No matter her hair length, she looked great.
Hairstylist Sam McKnight helped create her famous cropped style. Diana was one of those people who, every time things got simpler, she looked more striking. Even after divorcing, she remained Princess of Wales until her untimely death in 1997.
Spain’s unusually photogenic king
One of the things that makes King Felipe VI of Spain so attractive is that he’s so tall. He’s over six feet tall. That unusual height does quite a lot of the work before you even get to the face, and his broad shoulders only help out.
The fact that he’s often in military uniforms isn’t too bad, either. Felipe became King of Spain on June 19, 2014, after his father Juan Carlos I stepped down. His gray hair and beard honestly work in his favor and give him a completely different look from his younger years.
Modern elegance in Amman
Queen Rania has a face that’d look as good in a formal state portrait as a fashion photo. That’s probably the reason why she appears so often in both. She was born in Kuwait in 1970, and married Prince Abdullah in 1993. It took until Abdullah took the throne in 1999 for her to become Queen of Jordan, though.
Part of her appeal as Queen is her dark eyes and high cheekbones. Let’s not forget her very polished hair, either. Queen Rania is the kind of monarch who’s able to wear designers like Dior and Valentino without being swallowed by any of it.
Sweden’s model-ready prince
Prince Carl Philip is, by every measure of the phrase, a Scandinavian prince. He has dark hair and piercing eyes, along with a very solid athletic build, giving him a very royal look. He was only Crown Prince for a few months before Sweden changed its succession law.
That made his older sister Victoria the heir instead. Still, he has the title of Duke of Värmland, and all those flashy military uniforms to make him look good. He’s also competed in motorsports and has the racing suits to match.
The Swedish royal with cover-girl looks
It’d be easy to mistake Princess Madeleine for someone from a magazine cover. She has very symmetrical features, after all, and it’s because of her stunning looks that she’s been a favorite for photographers. She was born in 1982 as the youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
Princess Madeleine holds the title Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland. She’s so undeniably attractive that, in 2026, she even appeared on the cover of Vogue Scandinavia. It kind of makes sense, though. She has the sort of face that fashion magazines absolutely adore.
Bhutan’s picture-perfect queen
Jetsun Pema became Queen of Bhutan at only 21 years old. That was when she married King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. Unlike many European royals, however, she usually goes for a less heavy styling and prefers a more traditional Bhutanese look.
The king openly described how beautiful Pema was before they married. But looks are only part of the story. Turns out, she’s traveled the world for her education, too, and has studied in Bhutan, India, and London.
The princess with unforgettable eyes
Soraya of Iran’s eyes are what really sold her beauty. They were large and heavily framed by dark brows. Her eyes were so famous that decades of press coverage focused on them, along with her melancholy expression. Soraya became the Queen of Iran when she was young.
She married Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in Tehran in 1951, although it ended in divorce in 1958. She went on to become known as Princess Soraya and briefly acted in films. The camera liked her a lot, and really, it’s not hard to see why. She’s just that stunning.
Many times a royal
Princess Marina had quite a lot of royal experience. She was born in Athens in 1906 and was a princess of both Greece and Denmark. But then, in 1934, she married Prince George, Duke of Kent, and officially became part of the British royal family, too.
She had the kind of look that society photographers loved in the 1930s. You know, long face, elegant style, and dark hair, it was all very old-Hollywood. The funny thing is that she never even starred in films.
Monaco gained an Italian beauty
Technically, Beatrice Borromeo isn’t a princess, but she did become part of Monaco’s ruling family in 2015 when she wed Pierre Casiraghi. He is Princess Caroline’s son. Beatrice had made a life for herself before she became part of that family, as she’d modeled and worked as a journalist.
Being photographed was nothing new for her. It’s not hard to see why she was such a common fixture of magazines, as she’s both tall and blonde with very fine features. She also became a Dior ambassador. One thing’s for sure, and that’s that Monaco collects photogenic royals.
Green eyes behind the tiara
Tatiana Blatnik was another person who entered the royal family through marriage rather than birth. She married Prince Nikolaos, son of the last Greek king, Constantine II, in 2010. This made her a sort of royal, although Greece itself hasn’t had a monarchy since the 1970s.Â
What really makes her stand out is her softer look compared to some of the others here. She has flaxen hair, green eyes, and an easy smile, as well as a very straight posture that you expect from a royal. She divorced Nikolaos in 2024.
Grace Kelly’s fashion-loving granddaughter
It’s no surprise that Alexandra of Hanover is on the list. She’s the granddaughter of Grace Kelly and the daughter of Princess Caroline of Monaco, so genetics were on her side. Alexandra was born in Austria in 1999 to Caroline and Prince Ernst August of Hanover.Â
Her style of fashion is a lot more modern than Grace’s. That kind of makes sense since they lived decades apart. Alexandra regularly appears at Chanel and Dior shows in Paris, too.
The princess who fits right into fashion week
Maria-Olympia is the granddaughter of Constantine II, Greece’s final king, and she’s spent more time around fashion photographers than most former royals. Maria-Olympia has walked for Dolce & Gabbana and appeared in numerous fashion editorials.
She’s also someone who’s gone for a younger, less formal style of fashion as a royal. Think leather, mini dresses, sunglasses, that sort of thing. The truth is, she looks much more fashion-week than palace-balcony.
Denmark sent a royal down the runway
Lots of royals get photographed in designer clothes, that’s nothing new. But Prince Nikolai of Denmark took it one step further by being paid to wear them. He signed with Scoop Models and has walked for Burberry. He also opened Kim Jones’s first Dior menswear show.Â
That’s right, he built a genuine modeling career for himself as a royal, and it’s not hard to see why. Those green eyes and lean build make him perfect for the runway. His title changed to Count Nikolai of Monpezat in 2023, although he still has a place in Denmark’s line of succession.
Greece’s James Dean look
Take away the royal name for a second, and you’d probably think Achileas-Andreas was some young actor. But no, he’s the grandson of the final Greek king, Constantine II, and he was born after the nation abolished the monarchy.
His strong brows and slightly messy appearance don’t make him look royal. He certainly is, though. The movie-star comparison isn’t too much of a stretch, as Achileas-Andreas has acted before under the name Achi Miller.
Brunei’s movie-star prince
It doesn’t matter whether he’s wearing military uniforms or black-tie outfits. Prince Abdul Mateen of Brunei looks incredible in all of them. He’s one of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah’s sons, and Mateen has also trained with the military.
Mateen’s athletic build comes mostly from his time competing in polo matches. GQ Thailand once compared his appearance to an old-school Hollywood leading man, and honestly, we can see it.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
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