Halle Berry had not faced more embarrassment with her dress until the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. The 58-year-old Oscar-winning actress had to make a last-minute wardrobe change to avoid being denied entry to this year's event. And the reason was simple—Cannes doesn't promote nudity.
Berry arrived in an elegant black-and-white striped halter gown for Tuesday night's opening gala, but it wasn't her original pick. She revealed that she had initially planned to wear a different dress. However, after Cannes organizers introduced a stricter dress code banning "full nudity" and "overly voluminous" outfits, she was compelled to go ahead with a backup option as her initial choice violated the festival's guidelines.
Dropping Her Dress
"I had an amazing dress by Gupta that I cannot wear tonight because it's too big of a train," Berry said ahead of opening night. "I'm not going to break the rules." Berry also commented on the no-nudity rule, saying that she has no problem with the guideline.
"The nudity part is also probably a good rule," she added.
The "John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum" star is part of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival jury panel. Other jury members include "Succession" actor Jeremy Strong, South Korean director Hong Sang-soo, Italian actress Alba Rohrwacher, filmmaker Payal Kapadia of "All We Imagine as Light", French-Moroccan author Leïla Slimani, Congolese documentary filmmaker Dieudo Hamadi, and Mexican director Carlos Reygadas.
Juliette Binoche is leading the jury as its president this year.
Just one day before the festival began, organizers released a statement announcing a new, stricter dress code.
"This year, the Cannes Film Festival has made explicit in its charter certain rules that have long been in effect. The aim is not to regulate attire per se, but to prohibit full nudity on the red carpet, in accordance with the institutional framework of the event and French law," read the new guideline.
Making Things Clear
Organizers also clarified that the new dress code will be strictly enforced, saying that the festival "reserves the right to deny access to individuals whose attire could obstruct the movement of other guests or complicate seating arrangements in the screening rooms."
Although they didn't go into further detail, it's believed that Cannes is aiming to prevent incidents similar to what happened in 2022—or more recently, at this year's Grammy Awards, where Kanye West's wife, Bianca Censori, appeared completely nude on the red carpet.
In 2022, a protester made headlines by going topless on the Cannes red carpet.
More recently, Censori drew attention at the Grammy Awards by wearing a fully see-through dress with no bra or underwear, pushing the boundaries of red carpet fashion.
Despite the new rules, Berry isn't letting them dampen her mood—especially after a steamy evening with her boyfriend, Van Hunt. The "Never Let Go" actress turned heads when she posted a nude video of herself in bed alongside Hunt.
In the clip, Berry held up a tube of Let's Spin intimacy gel from her Respin sexual wellness line, playfully hinting that she was wrapping up Mother's Day with a passionate night.
Berry and Hunt began their relationship in 2020 during the pandemic, and things have only been heating up since.
Prior to her relationship with Hunt, the actress was married to Olivier Martinez from 2013 to 2016. The former couple shares an 11-year-old son, Maceo, and were involved in a nasty divorce battle, which was finalized in 2023.
