Nudity banned on the steps of the Cannes Film Festival: since when has the Croisette been more prudish than the red carpets of Hollywood?

" For reasons of decency, nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as in any other part of the Festival. " These are the few words taken from the new Cannes Festival-goer's charter that have so moved the Anglo-Saxon press. " How awful! " writes Vogue US on its website, before continuing: " As the 2025 Cannes Film Festival approaches, the grande dame (still in French, editor's note) of film events has done the unthinkable: she has banned what many consider to be her livelihood, namely revealing outfits on the red carpet ." The Daily Mail publishes an article regretting that " good old-fashioned decency is casting a shadow over the ^78th Cannes Film Festival when the annual ceremony begins Tuesday evening ."

Also read: See-through dress, no bra... Are today's girls less modest?

It must be said that Americans (and their stars) are very attached to the famous "naked dress" as they say . On the red carpets of the Oscars, the Golden Globes and the Grammys, not a ceremony without its multitude of actresses and influencers in translucent chiffon dresses leaving nothing to mystery - the pioneer of the genre being Marilyn Monroe whispering Happy Birthday, Mister President in 1962, for JFK's ^45th birthday, in a flesh-colored chiffon sheath embroidered with crystals.

Dressed in this (short) way, celebrities are almost guaranteed to attract the flashbulbs of photographers and the buzz of social networks. So, in recent years, a race has been underway to find the one with the most " risqué " outfit (the French word for "daring" in the language of Shakespeare). Rihanna and Kim Kardashian are regulars in this genre. But last February, on the Grammy Awards red carpet, Bianca Censori arrived in front of the photographers in a fur coat that, at the behest of her husband Kanye West, she dropped to the floor, revealing a beige tulle nightie that hid nothing of her virtue. The scene shocked the entire world, as much for the question of indecency as for that of submission to one's partner.

In any case, her outfit, or rather lack thereof, did not generate an official complaint from the California authorities. Wearing a completely transparent dress is not considered indecent exposure punishable by law in the United States (as it is in France). " An indecent exposure charge in California requires the voluntary public exposure of one's genitals with the specific intent to offend or sexually arouse ," Los Angeles-based attorney Andrea Oguntula explained to Page Six , acknowledging nonetheless that " Ms. Censori's outfit undoubtedly pushed the boundaries ."

" Nothing is more beautiful than a naked body"

Yves Saint Laurent

Is it to remedy this kind of performance in bad taste and therefore bad buzz that the authorities of the most famous film festival in the world wanted to remind us of decorum this year? Or do they want to refocus the debate on the films rather than on these famous Marches broadcast worldwide? " This year, the Cannes Film Festival has made explicit in its charter the rules that have already been applied for a long time ," the event's press service informed us. "It is not a question of regulating clothing but of prohibiting total nudity on the red carpet, in accordance with the institutional framework of the event and French law. "

So, is Cannes more prudish than Hollywood? A bit ironic when you consider that, in addition to Cannes stars' long love affair with revealing looks, from Cicciolina's low-cut net dress in 1988 to Bella Hadid's sheer Saint Laurent gown at the 2024 edition, France has always welcomed daring women who have gone bare. Among the sheer dresses that have made history are Marie-Antoinette 's "queen's shirts" designed by Rose Bertin, her Minister of Fashion, and Empress Josephine's "Greco-Roman" dresses. Closer to home, Jane Birkin unveiling her bare breasts and panties under the flashes of photographers (and therefore, unintentionally) under a transparent mini-dress for the premiere of the film Slogan in 1969. And of course, Yves Saint Laurent's "nude look" from 1966: a black chiffon dress belted with ostrich feathers, hiding just enough, on the grounds that " nothing is more beautiful than a naked body," according to the couturier of couturiers. More on the Cannes red carpet, one must believe.