Kate, 31, was wearing a dress by French designer Roland Mouret for the official 2013 Royal Film Performance in London.
She and husband Prince William, dapper in black tie, were attending the UK premiere of Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom at the Odeon Leicester Square.
Their four-month-old son, Prince George, remained home at Kensington Palace.
A dream in cream: The Duchess of Cambridge
stunned at the Royal Film Performance of Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom
on Thursday in London
Daring: The gown by French designer Roland
Mouret may have been long sleeved but it featured a thigh-high split
which showed off her legs as she walked the red carpet
Kate has worn the dress before - at a private dinner in May 2012 when Prince William spoke to the 'Thirty Club' at Claridges hotel - but 'blinged' it up tonight with an eye-catching costume jewellery necklace.
Her hair was swept back in a modern ponytail to show off her dramatic neckline to best effect.
Starring British actor Idris Elba, 'Mandela' follows the iconic anti-apartheid leader’s extraordinary life from childhood through to his 27-year imprisonment on Robben Island and, finally, his inauguration as the first democratically elected President of South Africa in 1994.
Date night: Kate was joined at the premiere by her husband Prince William, enjoying an evening off from parenting duties
Another British actress, Skyfall’s Naomie Harris, plays the politician’s controversial wife, Winnie.
The film itself, which has been 16 years in the making, has received mixed reviews from critics, but Elba, who is best known for his role as a detective chief inspector in the hit TV series Luther, has been praised as ‘towering’ and ‘Oscar-worthy’.
Speaking on the red carpet last night he told Mail Online: 'Everyone knows who Mandela is, everyone has an idea of what he sounds and looks like. I worked really hard to pull in all the elements, from the sound of his voice to the way he walks. I don't look anything like him but it was really important the audience got a sense of who Mandela is because the likelihood is that we will never meet him in person.
'For somone who doesn't look like Mandela you have got to work harder to get the audience in there.
'I think he [Mandela] has seen parts of the film but ultimately it's about his life, he's been there, he's done it - so he might not even need to see it.
'Tonight is extra special because this is my country and when the royals come out to watch a film it's. a big deal. I feel very proud that it's my film, really proud.'
Indeed ailing Mr Mandela, 95, is unlikely to ever see the finished film, based on his autobiography Long Walk To Freedom, as he is still in a criticial condition after being hospitalised earlier this year with a recurring lung infection.
On Wednesday his daughter, Makaziwe Mandela, insisted he was ‘still with us, strong, courageous’ but admitted for the first time that he was on his ‘deathbed’.
‘Even for a lack of a better word... on his deathbed he is teaching us lessons - lessons in patience, in love, lessons of tolerance,’ she added.
‘Every moment I get with him I'm amazed.
‘There are times where I have to pinch myself that I come from this man who is a fighter even though you can see he is struggling, but the fighting spirit is still there with him.'
The South African presidency has repeatedly described Mr Mandela's condition as critical but stable.
Another daughter, Zindzi Mandela, was at tonight’s premiere and said of the film: 'It's something that makes me feel really proud, what my family went through and the role my father played has been recognised. It is a reward [for him].
'When we document our history in this manner we do it not just for ourselves but also for the future generations, young people that my father is really passionate about.
'He has seen clips of the film and said he saw [Idris] that he thought it was him.'
She added: 'When my 11 year-old grandson saw the movie last week I asked him what did he thought and he said 'the dude who played grandad when he talks he kind of reminds me of him'.
'I said: 'What about the lady who play big mammy? [Winnie Mandela]. He said: 'That chick, I think she's hot!' '
Miss Harris, wearing a black bejewlled gown by one of the Duchess's favourite designers, Alexander McQueen, wasn't within earshot of the compliment but said earlier she was delighted that William and Kate were gracing the premiere.
'I have met him before several times at the polo and I hear she is just as down to earth as him,' she said.
Each year the Royal Film Performance is staged to raise funds for the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund, which supports industry employees and their families in times of hardship.
As well as the film’s director and cast, the Duke and Duchess will meet a selection of the film’s trustees and beneficiaries.
Also benefitting from this year’s event is The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, which works with the disadvantaged youth of South Africa.
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