October 9, 2019 |
2019 has been a big year for men’s red carpet style. It all kicked off with the Oscars when our frowing maven Billy Porter took the prize of best-dressed in a custom Christian Siriano gown, breaking all the archaic rules men have complied to for decades. Perhaps influenced by this year’s Met Gala theme being Camp, more and more men started looking beyond a three-piece suit when deciding what to wear while promoting their latest projects. Ezra Miller is another breakout star who, using the binary nature of gender as a loose concept, took style to places only few have been before. As expected, it’s queer people that push boundaries and prove it’s okay to wear something other than a hyper-masculine uniform and a polished shoe. So, who better to follow these fabulous human beings than the straight man who already has a devoted gay fanbase thanks to his starring role in Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name. Currently on a premiere tour for Netflix-produced adaptation of young King Henry V titled The King, Timothée Chalamet is turning some serious lewks.
Ezra Miller in Moncler by Pierpaolo Piccioli at the premiere of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
At the sole age of 23, Chalamet has got an Oscar nod, a line-up of box office hits behind him and objectively handsome features. He’s slender with dreamy eyes and a jawline that could cut a diamond. If there were a couple more inches to his height, Chalamet would probably be a staple on the men’s catwalks. Add to that a lot of natural charm and an awkward sense of humour, and you’ve got yourself one of the brightest star of new Hollywood. All these things also make him the perfect person to wear high fashions.
The first moment that made us pay attention to Chalamet’s style went down at Venice Film Festival when he wore a custom outfit (this was more than just a suit) created by Haider Ackermann which looked like the actor had a quick dip into Tilda Swinton’s personal wardrobe. While some may look silly in a pair of cowboy boots, a turnup on a tailored trouser and a boatneck satin top, Chalamet stunned for the abilities to pull off all that. And all that without the help of a personal stylist. He’s obviously been following fashion and is excited to have access to looks straight from the catwalk or even better – made specially for him by people who he’s admired for years. Chalamet is basically living the dream of every CSM student, but with the added bonus of earning millions instead of interning (for free).
Timothée Chalamet in S.R. Studio. LA. CA. SS20
While people like Porter and Miller radicalise the art of red carpet dressing, Chalamet is here to find a happy medium and assure you it’s “okay to look different.” They might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but his looks aren’t going to shock or make your gasp. You won’t see him wearing extreme make-up or a ballgown. Instead, Chalamet will walk out in a glittery Louis Vuitton harness or a pair Sterling Ruby paint-splattered dungarees, all semi-abstract ideas in celebrity dressing. Ever since the 1960s, when fashion designers began sending avant-garde ideas of style into the world, red carpets have been steadily falling behind the catwalks.
With the exception of few fashion-loving Hollywood stars that just have an innate love of clothes (Tilda Swinton, Chlöe Sevigny, Lupita Nyong’o), the outfits seen during fashion month go through a heavy process of watering down until they become streamlined enough to make sure these women don’t end up on the worst-dressed lists. Could you even imagine? And the boys are even further behind, almost exclusively sticking to tailoring for the occasion. In recent years though, as the worlds of fashion and celebrity become (almost) one, the horizons broaden too. Fashion magazines put celebrities on their covers, brands use them as ambassadors and in their campaigns. In return, those same celebrities go a bit beyond a simple dress because, well they’re paid to do so. Celebrity stylists play the role of mediators and therapists, assuring their clients: “No one will think you’re crazy if you wear a bold shoulder/ neon/ heavy eye make-up.”
Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer promoting ‘Call Me By Your Name’ at the Palm Spring International Film Festival
As for the men, there’s a definite undercurrent of sexuality in the conversation. For example, during the Call Me By Your Name promo tour, Timothée Chalamet – a straight man playing the role of a homosexual – almost exclusively stuck to suits and traditional silhouettes, standing at a safe distance from his equally straight co-star Armie Hammer. Chalamet dipped into a fun colour once or twice, but he was never seen in anything close to what he’s been wearing recently. Yes, there’s the question of access to big designer names, but with his love of fashion in mind, this was the Hollywood equivalent of saying #NoHomo. This time round, he’s got his co-star Lily Rose-Depp next to him, with whom he recently created a true viral meme of eating each others faces while on holiday. Coincidence? Probably not. But let’s hope Timothée Chalamet is just one of the many adventurous dressers that are here to prove to the world that sexuality and flair for dressing are not reciprocal. And in case all else fails, there’s plenty of gay men in badly-fitted Topshop suits walking around Soho to prove the point.
