Set button font style to italic with setStyle
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <mx:Application xmlns:mx="http://www.adobe.com/2006/mxml" initialize="initializeHandler(event)"> <mx:Script> private function initializeHandler(event:Event):void { button.setStyle("fontStyle", "italic"); } </mx:Script> <mx:Button id="button" label="Example" color="green" /> </mx:Application>