Sheryl Lee Ralph Jokes at Critics Choice Awards 2026 That ‘Lidocaine’ and Gluing Her Shoes Help Her Survive Red Carpets
- - Sheryl Lee Ralph Jokes at Critics Choice Awards 2026 That ‘Lidocaine’ and Gluing Her Shoes Help Her Survive Red Carpets
Jackie FieldsJanuary 5, 2026 at 2:16 AM
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Sheryl Lee Ralph -
Sheryl Lee Ralph revealed her trick to putting her best foot forward on the red carpet
In an interview with E! before the Critics Choice Awards 2026, the actress said she relies on 'Lidocaine' and gluing herself into her shoes before she hits a big event
Ralph was styled by her daughter Ivy “Coco” Maurice and wore Tony Ward Couture
Sherly Lee Ralph has a lesson or two on acing red carpet fashion.
Speaking with E! at the 2026 Critics Choice Awards, the Abbott Elementary star, 69, revealed the two hacks she relies on to make her uncomfortable footwear bearable.
“When you’re coming down these red carpets it’s not time for hiccups,” she explained. “I live by Lidocaine if the shoe even has the possibility of being uncomfortable and then I spray the shoe with spray adhesive, get my foot in and there is no flip-floppage.”
Ralph’s arrival at the star-studded awards show, where Abbott Elementary is up for Best Comedy Series, was certainly anything but a flop as she made an entrance in a plum Tony Ward Couture styled by her daughter, Ivy “Coco” Maurice. The design featured beading on the halter neckline and textured embellishments on the flared pocketed skirt, which actually covered her shoe of choice for the night.
Her hair was styled in a long ponytail, which displayed her statement earrings.
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Frazer Harrison/Getty
Sheryl Lee Ralph
In a 2023 interview with PEOPLE, the Dreamgirls star opened up about the ways Coco "totally elevated" her style.
She explained that her youngest has “given me a look that other women look at and say, ‘Oh my God, I need to try that,’ or, ‘Why didn't I try being more colorful?’ or, ‘I can add just a little bit of sparkle.’ And I'm like, ‘My God, this is my child,’" she said, adding, “I did not waste one dollar on her education. Not one dollar was wasted.”
Along with Coco, Ralph also shares son Etienne with her ex-husband, Eric Maurice, whom she divorced in 2001. And while her children may have a connection to Hollywood through her legacy, Ralph told PEOPLE, “They're not looking at me to help them do this or that. They're not using nepotism. They're not coming to me saying, 'Can you call this? Can you do that?' They're doing it themselves, and I just respect them so much for that."
"Sometimes I say, 'Well, can I help?' They're like, 'No, mom, we got this. We got this.' And I'm like, 'Wow, you really do got this,'" she said.
See PEOPLE's full coverage of the 31st annual Critics Choice Awards Sunday, Jan. 4 as they air live on E! and USA Network at 7 p.m. ET from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
