Kinky fashion is here! And the timing is not random
When actor Alexander Skarsgård stepped onto the red carpet at the premiere of The Phoenician Scheme at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival wearing kinky, thigh-high leather boots from Saint Laurent in May, his footwear choice was the talk of the town. Some fashionistas praised his daring style, while others noticed something: Fetish fashion was slowly but surely making a comeback.
The inference didn't just come from Skarsgård's edgy look. It also came from the sartorial choices of others, such as Lucy Liu at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival in a strapless black leather dress by Maison Margiela, Sabrina Elba at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in a red corset dress by Dilara Findikoglu, and collections such as Marine Serre and Dsquared2 for Fall/Winter 2025.
Now, Rick Owens Spring/Summer 2026 menswear line, various Dilara Findikoglu designs seen on Chappell Roan, Miss Bashful and Dua Lipa, and the Ludovic de Saint Sernin BDSM ballet collection recently worn by Miley Cyrus just proved the point: Kinky fashion is here, again!
Kinky fashion: a story of rebellion and seduction
The story of kinky fashion dates back to the 18th century, when the term ‘‘fetish’’ was first coined, as shared by Jennifer Richards. Scholars such as Michael Hayworth argue that corsets and short skirts that emerged at the end of the 19th century were the first real manifestation of fetish fashion, as the majority of society didn't have access to these. It was only in the post-war 1920s that the style rose to fame with the daring and avant-garde hats, lingerie, and shoes of the French company Yva Richard. One of Richard's most famous designs was a studded, cone-shaped metal bra, which is widely considered to be the precursor to Jean Paul Gaultier's iconic cone bra. In the 1960s, kinky fashion continued to evolve, seen, for instance, in Rudi Gernreich’s creations of the monokini and the “thong” panties, in the gayleather subculture, and in the heroine of the television show The Avengers, Mrs. Peel, who wore a black leather catsuit. Then, in 1970s Britain, the defiant punk subculture adopted the fetish style, which Vivienne Westwood turned into a fashion object later in the decade. Since then, designers such as Thierry Mugler, Maison Margiela, Helmut Lang, Tom Ford, and Alexander McQueen, pop culture icons like Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman in 1992 and Halle Berry's Catwoman in 2004, and celebrities such as Lady Gaga, Madonna and Rihanna have brought kinky style into the mainstream while maintaining its roots.
Fetish fashion 2025: between second skin and corsets
Kinky boots, corsets, underwear as outerwear, second-skin garments of rubber and leather, body piercing, you name it. The variety of kinky fashion is endless. But why is it back? According to The Guardian, fetishism has historically emerged after economic crises, major events, or turbulent eras. With the year we are having, marked by economic anxiety, political regression and a creeping return to conservative values, that doesn't seem random. In fact, when we look back through history, its appearance in the post-war 1920s, the socially, politically and culturally shifting 1960s, the rebellious 1970s and the fatigued lockdown 2020s makes sense.
Kinky fashion as a political and self-affirming act
Although some people regard fetish fashion as exploitative and misogynistic, others interpret it as a bold statement. Now, as governments are increasingly flirting with conservatism, traditionalism, transphobia, misogyny, and xenophobia, there seems to be an odd BDSM-like dynamic in the global landscape that is controlling people’s bodies, minds, and lives. In a sense, by embracing kinky fashion, people feel they are taking control of themselves while also answering to the times with rebellion.