The fashion world has always cherished family ties, but few duos seem as effortless as newcomer Kai Schreiber and her supermodel mum Naomi Watts, who made her first-ever campaign appearance this week. The mother and daughter are faces of Simkhai’s fall 2026 line, photographed by Mikael Jansson and styled by Camilla Nickerson, in this campaign. Jonathan Simkhai used the twins this way to demonstrate how his garments move gracefully between generations. Watts brings an elegant, all American sophistication while Schreiber brings a sharp youthful attitude to the looks, in keeping with her rising career as a young model.
There is no forced twinness in the campaign: both wear simple, comfortable clothes that can be identified as their own but but are from the same simple, textured tailoring and muted palette collection. The fall range is leaning on black ivory burgundy, chocolate brown ochre mushroom and charcoal. The focus is on fabrics and finishes with the appeal for structure with an understated feeling of luxury (no screaming).
For this campaign, and Watts and Schreiber, models Sage Elsesser, Malcolm Mc Rae, Awar Odhiang and Betsy Gaghan made the cast for the lineup feeling the cast a mix of what feels real. For Schreiber, the appearance is another step in a rapidly accelerating career. A debut on the runway at Paris Fashion Week in Alessandro Michele’s Valentino show was followed by shows for Jason Wu Altuzarra Calvin Klein, Michael Kors Fendi Celine, Mugler, and others.
She is also working on campaign for H&M and Haus Labs. The casting with her mother in a glossy studio is, for a model who is still at the start of a career, feels like a full circle. Watts was positive about the experience.
She had admired the Simkhai collections for some time, and could not resist the invitation to work with Simkhai and her daughter. In interviews, she stated that sharing a closet was a familiar experience. Schreiber had been borrowing tote bags from her mother from the late 90s/early 2000s, while Watts had been reaching into her daughters hand bags. The interchange of clothing is consistent with the more high fashion feel of the campaign. The timing of the release is perfect, as the collection becomes available. Shoppers will, without doubt, immediately use it as a visual guide to how the clothes will look on real people of varying ages and energies.
In an industry where casting “young” and casting established girls is an all too familiar separation, having the mother and daughter in the same shot is a breath of fresh air. It reminds us that style has no expiry date and between the two extremes, you can still mature without having to let go. Fashion campaigns often strive for aspiration.
This campaign also does something more subdued and accessible: conveying joy in a parental relationship to commingle so well in the creative realm. Watts is still actively working as an actress and encouraging her children’s pursuits. Schreiber is beginning to make her own way as a model and doesn’t need to disavow the family tie that lives on in the public mind.