Fashion rules or censorship? Cannes 2025 dress code sparks debate

The Cannes Film Festival has drawn a bold new line on the red carpet. For the past many years, we have seen celebrities wearing their creative best (and worst) at the international film festival. This year, however, the Cannes looks will be different from the previous ones.

Ahead of its 77th edition, the organisers have officially banned nudity on the red carpet, citing concerns about the increasingly daring trend of “naked dresses” that have dominated celebrity fashion in recent years. The organisers have also laid down a specific dress code.

Cannes Film Festival organisers lay down new dress code

The official document of the Cannes Film Festival has laid down the rules for dressing this year, “For the Grand Théâtre Lumière gala screenings taking place around 7 and 10 p.m., which are attended by the artistic teams, evening wear (long dress, tuxedo) is required. Alternatively, you may also wear "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-colored tie. Tote-bags, backpacks or large bags are prohibited during gala screenings."

The festival's new “charter for festival-goers” clearly states: “For decency reasons, nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as in any other area of the festival.”

This move marks a significant shift for a festival known for celebrities bringing their fashion game to the red carpet. From Bella Hadid’s see-through Schiaparelli gown to numerous barely-there ensembles that made headlines, the Cannes red carpet has long been a showcase of bold sartorial choices.

Even long trail gowns, ones usually worn by celebrities, including Aishwarya Rai and Urvashi Rautela, have time and again gained the limelight.

The document further outlines that “The Festival welcoming teams will be obligated to prohibit red carpet access to anyone not respecting these rules.”

Is this new move policing self-expression?

In 2025, are these new rules helping Cannes maintain its cinematic dignity, or are they simply policing self-expression under the guise of decorum?

There’s no denying that Cannes is, first and foremost, a celebration of film. But over the decades, it’s also become a global fashion moment—a red carpet rivaling the Met Gala, with its own brand of glitz and rebellion. Can Cannes escape the very fashion circus it helped create? Or is it simply reshaping it into something more palatable, more “respectable,” and arguably, more restrictive?

As the festival curtain rises, the real question is whether this crackdown preserves the sanctity of cinema or just sanitises the spotlight.