Who's naughty, who's nice? Photos: Reuters, AP
Hollywood star Halle Berry was tripped up by the Cannes Film Festival’s new dress code on Tuesday banning extravagantly large dresses on the red carpet, while others appeared to flout it.
New regulations banning nudity on the red carpet, as well as long dress trains, meant Berry had to leave a gown she had chosen for the opening night in her wardrobe.
“I had an amazing dress to wear tonight by Gupta, and I cannot wear it because the train is too big,” she told reporters, referring to Indian designer Gaurav Gupta, who had previously dressed American rapper Cardi B and made big statement gowns for the Met Gala.
“Of course, I’m going to follow the rules,” added the American actress, who is on the Cannes jury that will decide which film wins the Palme d’Or top prize.
Yet, others clearly did not.
German model Heidi Klum sported a pink train that was at least 3m long on the first red carpet of the festival, while Chinese actress-influencer Wan Qianhui appeared in an enormous white marshmallow mountain of white taffeta.
Berry, who won a Best Actress Oscar for Monster’s Ball (2001), also backed the festival organisers on clamping down on overly risque outfits with new written rules. “The nudity part is probably also a good rule,” she said.
Halle Berry is a member of the jury of the 78th Cannes Film Festival. Photo: AFP
Cannes organisers raised eyebrows on Monday by publicly putting its dress rules into writing for the first time.
“It is not about regulating” what people wear, but “to ban total nudity on the red carpet, in line with French law”, said a spokesman.
The Cannes red carpet has seen a procession of daring and revealing looks over the years, with model Bella Hadid in particular sending social media into a spin with a plunging sculptural Schiaparelli creation in 2021.
“Naked dresses” – provocative looks that reveal considerably more than they conceal – have become something of a red-carpet phenomenon of late, with American rapper Kanye West’s wife, Australian architect Bianca Censori, causing a scandal at the Grammy Awards in February. Censori had worn a sheer dress with nothing underneath, reported Reuters.
Heidi Klum flouts Cannes Film Festival's fashion guidelines. Photo: AP
After years of rows and controversies, Cannes has also clarified its rules on footwear, with many accusing it of forcing women to wear high heels.
Several stars defied the tacit rule by going in flats or barefoot, including actresses Julia Roberts, Cate Blanchett and Isabelle Huppert.
Kristen Stewart dug in her heels by walking onto the red carpet in 2018 and then dramatically removing her towering Christian Louboutin stiletto heels before the cameras.
The rule has now been clearly codified.
The festival has decreed that “elegant shoes or sandals with or without heels” are allowed – a change that the 2025 jury president, French Oscar winner Juliette Binoche, hailed as “a very good idea”, joking that she was speaking from “experience”. – AFP
