Jessica Chastain turns heads in a plunging minidress and shows off her new blonde bob as she arrives at the Heartland premiere in New York

Jessica Chastain dressed to impress in a plunging black minidress as she hit the red carpet at the Heartland premiere at Metrograph in New York on Thursday. The Hollywood actress, 49, looked incredible in the sleeveless number which she cinched in at the waist with a dazzling silver belt. Jessica, who plays a former country music star in the new mystery movie, put on a leggy display in a pair of coordinated tights and elevated her frame in a pair of towering heels. But it wasn't her outfit that caught the eye, it was her new blonde bobbed hair which she styled in waves. Jessica has ditched her signature fiery red locks for the platinum blonde style, which she debuted on Jimmy Kimmel Live! last month admitting, 'It is funny being a blonde.'She explained that she decided to make the change after testing out the hair colour for three months on the set of The Off Weeks. Jessica Chastain dressed to impress in a plunging black minidress as she hit the red carpet at the Heartland premiere at Metrograph in New York on Thursday The Hollywood actress, 49, looked incredible in the sleeveless number which she cinched in at the waist with a dazzling silver beltBut it wasn't her outfit that caught the eye, it was her new blonde bobbed hair which she styled in wavesThe reaction from people has been interesting, with Jessica admitting she feels she is expected to be 'soft and demure' as a blonde.'I mean, a red head, you can be quite, you know, sassy,' she said.'It’s very special to be a redhead, but it’s also nice to have a change every once in a while. And now, you know, when I’m a little bit sassier than normal, people look at me, like, shocked,' she said.'Like, they expect me to be soft and demure.'Jessica was inspired to take the plunge after trying out the hair colour for three months on the set of the show The Off Weeks.'I just played a part where I had a very similar hair colour in a wig and so, I guess I got to test drive the hair for three months. And I was like, "All right, I’m going I’m going for it!"' she said.Elsewhere at the Heartland premiere Jessica was joined by co-star Garrett Hedlund who looked dapper in a white pinstriped suit and brown boots. Elsewhere ex Disney star and singer Ross Lynch dressed smart in a black blazer and blue striped shirt as he hit the red carpet. Jessica posed for a group picture alongside Garrett, Ross and the rest of the cast Skyler Day, Sarah Helbringer, Carter Faith and Paul Sparks.The Help actress later layered a black blazer over her dress as she headed to the film's afterparty in the Big Apple. Heartland follows former country megastar Misty Jones, who comes out of seclusion to investigate the disappearance of her missing niece, a rising country musician, and must grapple with her own past and Nashville’s seedy underbelly. Jessica, who plays a former country music star in the new mystery movie, put on a leggy display in a pair of coordinated tights and elevated her frame in a pair of towering heels Elsewhere at the Heartland premiere Jessica was joined by co-star Garrett Hedlund who looked dapper in a white pinstriped suit and brown boots Jessica posed for a group picture alongside Garrett and the rest of the cast Pictured L-R Ross Lynch, Skyler Day, Sarah Helbringer, Carter Faith, Jessica Chastain, Garrett Hedlund and Paul SparksElsewhere ex Disney star and singer Ross Lynch dressed smart in a black blazer and blue striped shirt as he arrived at the bash Jessica beamed alongside Shana Feste at the screening The stars chatted away ahead of watching the film Arriving at the afterparty, Jessica added a black blazer over her dress It's not the first time Jessica has tried out blonde hair colour.In 2023, she attended the Met Gala rocking platinum locks with an edgy black outfit – a look she embraced for making her feel 'quite villainess'.'I prefer the red just because it's more me,' she told Access Hollywood. 'But the greatest thing about what we do is we get to pretend to be other people, and I felt quite villainess, you know, with the sunglasses and the fabulous dress and jewelry and rings.'Jessica recently admitted the new hair colour marks her first time actually dyeing her hair.'I have never dyed my hair – and it was such an experience,' she told Net-A-Porter with a laugh. 'It wasn’t that I didn’t dye my hair because I was worried about other people. Just the worry of, like, "Am I going to ruin my hair?" Now I just feel like, "I’ve never done this; I want to try it". It feels good to be a blonde.”'I don’t think blondes have more fun, because I’m having the same amount of fun I had before! But it feels good,' she said.Jessica is no stranger to undergoing a transformation, at least on camera.In 2022 she received an Oscar for playing Tammy Faye Bakker, the late televangelist who was known for caking her face in make-up, in The Eyes of Tammy Faye.The Molly's Game star revealed it once took her seven-and-a-half hours to have the make-up applied, and it got 'so heavy and hot', Jessica worried about her circulation.She told the LA Times: 'I got to set and I was so panicky. 'I started to have hot flushes because it's so heavy and hot. I was afraid.'It was like going on a long-distance flight every day. Because if it takes seven and a half hours to put on, it's going to take at least two hours to get off. It was concerning to me.'