Nudity and 'voluminous outfits' banned from Cannes Film Festival

RTÉ News​

12-05-2025

Since 1946, the Cannes Film Festival has been one of the most fashionable events on the industry's calendar, but 2025 may see a dramatic change to the star-studded red carpet.
The site of some of the celebrity world's most daring ensembles in recent years, celebrities from across the globe are often snapped experimenting with everything from avant-garde looks to barefoot rebellions.
This year, however, it seems that things may be a little more subdued as the official website of the festival has added some extra information to its FAQ section.
For the Grand Théâtre Lumière gala screenings, they state that evening wear (long dress, tuxedo) is required.
Other options include "a little black dress," a cocktail dress, a dark-colored pantsuit, a dressy top with black pants, elegant shoes and sandals with or without a heel (no sneakers), a black or navy-blue suit with bow-tie or dark-coloured tie.
Additionally, they state that 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 theatre" will also not be permitted.
According to the website, the festival's welcoming teams will be obligated to prohibit red carpet access to anyone who breaks these rules.
However, with the new dress code being announced just one day out from the illustrious event, it will be interesting to see if celebrities and their stylists can adhere to the rules.
Nudity and voluminous dresses aside, it is also interesting to note that "sandals without a heel" are specifically an option for the film festival, which previously came under fire for reportedly turning away a number of women from a red carpet screening of Carol in 2015 due to their flat shoes.
At the time, Cannes' director Thierry Frémaux denied that the footwear was obligatory, saying: "The rumour saying the festival insists on high heels for women on the red carpet is unfounded".
While Cannes' official dress code for the red carpet did not specifically mention the height of a woman's heel, it did insist on formal dress, which the festival's hosts and hostesses may have taken to mean 'high heel only'.
Either way, it certainly got a reaction from Julia Roberts, who went barefoot in 2016 to the premiere of her film Money Monster.
In 2019, Kristen Stewart followed in Julia's bare footsteps, ditching her shoes to tackle the famous Cannes staircase.
Stay tuned to see if any red carpet rebellions take shape for 2025.
The 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival runs from Tue, May 13, 2025 – Sat, May 24, 2025.