Cannes film festival organizers have banned excessive sheer & ‘voluminous’ dresses

The Cannes Film Festival begins today. Post-pandemic and post-MeToo, Cannes has declined in relevancy, but it’s still an important stop for a lot of would-be awards contenders and stars. Cannes might even be “too big to fail” at this point, there’s just so much money involved, so many major sponsors who have invested so much in the festival. The one consistent thing about Cannes is that women still come out wearing absurd gowns and skimpy, tacky, body-baring looks. Well, no more? On the eve of the festival’s opening, the festivals organizers told media outlets that a stricter dress code will be enforced. That dress code? No breast-baring and no giant gowns. What are we doing here??

Ahead of the start of the 2025 edition, the Cannes Film Festival has issued an updated red carpet dress code that effectively bans full nudity and “voluminous” ensembles. “For decency reasons, nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as in any other area of the festival. Voluminous outfits, in particular those with a large train, that hinder the proper flow of traffic of guests and complicate seating in the theater are not permitted,” per the festival on its official charter. “The festival welcoming teams will be obligated to prohibit red carpet access to anyone not respecting these rules.”

The Hollywood Reporter reached out to the Cannes press office for additional comment and a festival rep confirms that the charter was just updated to reflect “certain rules that have long been in effect.” The goal of the update is “not to regulate attire per se but to prohibit full nudity on the carpet” in accordance with the institutional framework of the festival as well as French law, per the Cannes rep.

Cannes security officials have notoriously been strict when it comes to dress codes at the Palais, specifically for screenings at the glamorous Grand Théâtre Lumière, which routinely hosts the auteur and A-list-packed world premieres. Black tie and evening wear is required for those screenings — held in the nighttime from 7-10 p.m. — and guidance suggests options like tuxedos and long dresses or “little black dress, cocktail dress, dark-colored pantsuit, a dressy top with black pants; elegant shoes and sandals with or without a heel; a black or navy-blue suit with bow-tie or dark-colored tie. Tote-bags, backpacks or large bags are prohibited.”

The new ban on nudity and voluminous outfits aligns with such codes, but it begs two questions: How strictly will the dress code be enforced, and will A-list stars and/or models be booted for flouting the rules? While “elegant shoes” are required, megastars Julia Roberts and Kristen Stewart have both removed their heels to glide up the Palais steps barefoot.

[From THR]

What bugs me is that this is that the dress-code update/enforcement was announced on the eve of the festival… when most women probably already organized their looks for the Palais, and many designers had already customized dozens of gowns with long, fussy trains and sheerness. Like, give women some notice so that they can make adjustments ahead of time. Anyway, I think we’ll probably hear of some women being turned away for various sheer looks, but I can’t see them turning away women for wearing big, dumb dresses. It will be interesting to see how these rules are enforced.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.