Cannes’t Believe It: Cannes Film Festival Bans Nude Dresses & Long Trains

Just when you thought Cannes was the last place where fashion could truly go rogue, the Festival has thrown us all a curveball—and not the chic, backless kind. In a surprising twist, the 2025 Cannes Film Festival has officially banned nudity from the red carpet “for decency reasons.” Yes, you read that right. The era of the sheer, skin-baring gown at Cannes is officially over.

According to the updated dress code, nudity is strictly prohibited not only on the red carpet, but anywhere within the festival. And they’re not playing around—guests who don’t comply could be denied entry altogether. It’s the first time a rule like this has made it into the official guidelines, and the message is clear: no nipples, no sheer panels, no Bella Hadid in Saint Laurent with every nipple accounted for.

And while we’re at it, those dramatic, sweeping trains we all live for? Also out. Apparently, voluminous gowns are causing a traffic issue. What’s next—banning six-inch heels for safety reasons?

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images & Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images for Chopard

Of course, there’s a certain level of respect you have to give the festival—it’s their red carpet, after all. But you can’t help but mourn what this might mean for red carpet fashion. Cannes has long been the home of sartorial spectacle. The place where a single dress can dominate fashion discourse for weeks, years sometime. If the drama is being dialled down, what’s left? Are we entering a new minimalist era—or worse, a sensible one?

You just know stylists around the world are frantically rearranging fittings and rethinking silhouettes. Will the new Cannes silhouette be sleek, and contained? And where do our beloved sheer showstoppers and metres of cascading tulle go now? If Cannes isn’t the place for fashion theatre, then honestly—where is?

Here’s hoping the fashion girlies find a way to bring the drama within the new rulebook. Because while we can’t fight the dress code, we can still pray for couture with attitude.

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