Lifestyle

Cut It Out! Hollywood’s Red Carpets Are Finding New Ways to Show Skin

Cut It Out! Hollywood’s Red Carpets Are Finding New Ways to Show Skin

Save this story Save Story Save this story Kim Kardashian has never met a cutout she didn’t like. The reality star and fashion provocateur has made something of a signature out of showing skin in unexpected places—she loves an exposed hip, a plunging neckline, and a dress that appears to defy the laws of physics. At last night’s 2026 LACMA Art+Film Gala in Los Angeles, she was in familiar territory, wearing a burgundy sequined Gucci gown by Demna that was all business from the front, with its high neck, long sleeves, and sculpted silhouette, and decidedly less so from the side. A dramatic slash across the waist revealed an expanse of skin above the hip.

And she was far from alone. If the evening’s red carpet was anything to go by, Hollywood’s appetite for the naked dress has evolved into something more architectural and off-beat. Forget the romantically diaphanous or the all-out sheer, the latest approach to showing skin is all about strategic exposure. Think a dramatically placed opening, a vertiginous slit, and plunging, crack-skimming backs. Sometimes, what a dress conceals is just as important as what it reveals.

Leading the charge, of course, was the cohort of celebrities dressed by Gucci, where Demna has established a provocative, high-octane strain of glamour. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley wore a black, long-sleeved custom gown with exaggerated shoulders and a severe, almost monastic front that gave way to a completely exposed back and butt, with a daring slit extending to the hip, fastened with a small jeweled detail. Restrained from one angle, outrageously risqué from another.

Fellow model Amber Valletta also opted for custom Gucci, in a black column gown with a plunging open back, a silver ornamental detail, and a thigh-baring slit that extended almost to her waist. Emily Ratajkowski chose a white draped Gucci number with a plunging neckline and dramatically open sides, paired with a sky-high leg slit.

There were plenty more variations on the theme. Alix Earle embraced the evening’s maximalist mood in a silver Gucci, disco-ready halter gown dripping with strands of shimmering embellishment, with a thigh-high slit emerging from beneath the metallic fringe. Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn also turned to Gucci, wearing a glittering, one-shouldered purple gown with an asymmetrical neckline and a dramatic slit that revealed a sheer black-stockinged leg. Candice Swanepoel took a similarly sparkling approach in a silver, crystal-strewn gown with a plunging neckline and two daringly high slits, with more sparkle cascading over her legs.

Not everyone was in Gucci, though. Madelaine Petsch opted for a look from Georges Hobeika’s spring 2027 collection, with a black halter-neck bodice that offered a hint of side-boob, and which plunged almost to the waist before meeting a cream floral-embroidered pencil skirt.

The naked dress has long been a Hollywood fixture. Body-conscious designs are beloved by the Kardashian-Jenner clan, having a deep understanding of the impact of a well-placed flash of flesh. But then there’s people like Anya Taylor-Joy, a champion of the sensuous and barely there, keeping a more ghostly and romantic bent with winter-white corsetry by Dilara Findikoglu and forays into vampy Tom Ford . This new iteration, however, uses precision cuts and dramatic contrasts to draw the eye to particular parts of the body.

With Demna’s Gucci helping to usher in a new mood of all-out, unabashed glamour, it seems the red carpet is entering its next undressed era.

Michelle Obama Brings American Style to Céline Dion’s Paris Comeback Show

Kim Kardashian and Lewis Hamilton Have Found Their Loved-up Couple Style Rhythm

A Brutally Honest Look at What Three Fashion People Bought—and Spent—in One Month

Amal Clooney Isn’t Letting Go of Boho Just Yet

Listen to The Run-Through with Vogue , a weekly podcast featuring the most exciting stories and hot takes from the worlds of culture, politics, sports and–of course–fashion

The Vogue Runway app has expanded! Update to the latest version to see all Vogue content, as well as new features like our Runway Genius quiz, Group Chats, and posts from Vogue contributors.

Become a Vogue Business Member! Join today to gain access to our latest series ‘ Fashion’s Real Reset Starts Now ’. The ultimate resource for fashion and beauty industry professionals.

Explore the Runway Image Archive where you can access over 1.2 million runway images from past and present fashion shows.

Never miss a story: Add Vogue.com to your preferred sources in Google.


Source: Lifestyle

More in Lifestyle →