The 2025 Cannes Film Festival's Best-Dressed Stars Ask, "What Dress Code?"

If the new Cannes Film Festival dress code intended to turn the focus away from stars' fashion entirely, the earliest entries on 2025's best-dressed list prove it backfired.

24 hours before Cannes regulars like Bella Hadid and Eva Longoria descended onto the red carpet, the festival's organizers unveiled a fresh—and controversial—set of wardrobe restrictions. Cascading, voluminous trains were forbidden to speed up step-and-repeat traffic. "Nudity," perceived as an outright attack on celebrities' favorite naked dresses, was banned in the name of "decency." The restrictions set off an online debate over the policy's murky connotations. Stylist Karla Welch called it "lame and patriarchal" on Instagram Stories, while stylist Maeve Reilly told Vogue Business the new restrictions were a "disappointment."

In the lead up to the opening ceremony on May 13, it seemed A-listers' teams would have to scramble behind the scenes to ensure their clients could meet the moment—whether they agreed with the policy or not. So far, Cannes' best-dressed have still delivered plenty of glamour. If any of their pieces were a Hail Mary request, it doesn't show.

For the first slate of premieres, Bella Hadid's Saint Laurent dress styled by Molly Dickson delivered heart-stopping proportions without baring much skin, and Julia Garner's sequin gown by Gucci deftly blended textures. By day two, Zoe Saldaña stunned in a red carpet LBD and matching black jacket. These are only the start: The 2025 Cannes Film Festival lasts through Saturday, May 24, and each day will bring dozens more sightings of runway and custom couture. Some styling will no doubt test the Cannes dress code's limits; we say, bring it on.

Below, catch up on the best-dressed stars attending the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, updated daily with more memorable (and dress-code-approved) looks.

Zoe Saldaña wearing Saint Laurent

Zoe Saldaña's Academy Award-winning glow hasn't worn off yet. The star made her first major film circuit appearance post-Oscar on the Cannes red carpet for Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning's May 14 premiere. The star picked right up where her Emilia Pérez press looks left off, in an scoop-neck Saint Laurent black dress and strappy sandals. A leather jacket draped across her arms added a chicly insouciant air to the overall look—like she'd hurried out the door and barely had time to throw on her final layer. Only a trophy holder could make such an understated look seem so chic.

Angela Bassett wearing Burberry 

Burberry is firmly on its comeback beat—at least among A-listers. Beyoncé is wearing custom tartan on the Cowboy Carter tour; Cardi B and Law Roach chose the British label for the Met Gala; Gen Z celebrities are all vacationing in Burberry bikinis last seen in the early aughts. Attending the Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning premiere at Cannes on May 14, Angela Bassett added another entry to the Burberry renaissance tally. She tapped the house for a look commenters called "coven couture" on Instagram, featuring a tight-fitting black bodice offset by dramatic navy and black fringe along the sleeves and skirt. A still photo doesn't quite do it justice; when Bassett glided down the carpet and up the steps into the theatre, the dress hypnotically swayed with her.

Hayley Atwell wearing Giambattista Valli Couture

She may be the leading lady in a movie series dedicated to seemingly insurmountable missions, but Hayley Atwell pulled off her sculptural Giambattista Valli gown for the Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning premiere with ease. The star juxtaposed her dress's dramatic proportions—it has an oversize bow and a sizable trumpet skirt—with simple drop earrings and a slicked-back updo. Standout Cannes style, accomplished.

Eva Longoria wearing Elie Saab

Some stars consider crisp, all-white outfits their Cannes Film Festival essential. Eva Longoria and stylist Maeve Reilly have a more adventurous staple: bright sequins. Longoria followed her pre-carpet nude sequin dress on May 13 with an Elie Saab gown so thoroughly coated in emerald green sequins, it looked almost liquid. Paired with Wicked green earrings by Chopard, she was the gem of the Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning red carpet.

Halle Berry wearing Celia Kritharioti

Halle Berry chicly handled a fashion roadblock on the first day of Cannes. She'd planned to wear a Gurav Gupta gown, but traded it for a runway Jacquemus dress after fearing she'd "break the rules" with her original look's train. The following day, Berry hit the Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning premiere in a Celia Kritharioti dress that delivered on volume without tripping the Cannes dress code alarm. A tight-fitting, black strapless bodice gave way to a frothing pink gingham skirt. It's bubbly and effervescent, while allowing Berry to exercise her hard-earned red carpet right to take up space.

Bella Hadid wearing Saint Laurent

Hours into the first day of the Cannes Film Festival, it was already decided: a freshly blonde Bella Hadid would appear on the best-dressed list more than once. She made a strong first showing at the May 13 premiere of Partir Un Jour in Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello—the same house behind her memorable first look at last year's circuit. The cross-back gown in black satin, paired with rhinestone-adorned heels and oversize emerald earrings, showed expert restraint. It perfectly balanced what it revealed and concealed, even as the back cut low and the slit went sky high.

Julia Garner wearing Gucci

Julia Garner's second time attending the Cannes Film Festival is already her best—and her most Gucci. After greeting photographers in a head-to-toe look from the Pre-Fall 2025 collection, she changed into a bespoke draped dress by the house for the opening ceremony and Partir Un Jour premiere. She didn't need a body-baring naked dress to catch fashion editors' attention: the contrasting textures at play between her nude sequin base layer and swaths of draped black sheer fabric were plenty to behold.

Eva Longoria wearing Tamara Ralph Couture

Eva Longoria is one of the Cannes Film Festival's undisputed queens. 2025 marks twenty years of Longoria appearances at the annual event, where she typically feels an urge to "color outside the lines" with her red carpet style.

After spending the morning in a skintight, sequin naked dress, Longoria changed into a Tamara Ralph Couture gown with mirrorball-esque panels and a thin black train. The fabric's high shine and contrasting textures brought all the drama one expects from Cannes—without tipping off the dress-code police.

Irina Shayk wearing Armani Privé

The last time model Irina Shayk attended the Cannes Film Festival, in 2023, she paired a leather bikini top and low-rise skirt by Mowalola with a hulking Messika diamond necklace. Two years later, she took the new dress code to heart with a diametrically opposed Armani Privé look. Her frothy strapless dress twinkled like starlight with all-over silver detailing, while a high half-updo and elbow-length gloves provided some old-world charm. This is the kind of swerve that makes the changing look of Cannes feel a little more welcome—that is, when it helps us see a celebrity we think we know in an entirely new style.