Prepare for the return of huge shorts

IN THE WORDS of Isaac Newton’s third law, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Indeed, this interaction is precisely what’s happening to men’s shorts right now. Following seasons where short shorts ruled the runways — and Paul Mescal’s muscular thighs — now, designers known for setting the zeitgeist are reacting with longer, roomier and baggier proposals. Like, we’re talking below the knee curtains you haven’t seen since Michael Jordan went golfing in the 1990s.

One of the first things I noticed about the Jacquemus show, which was held in Capri earlier this week and marked 15 years of the insanely successful independent French brand, was the shorts. I’ve seen some big trunks in my time — again, my Dad’s wardrobe from the ’90s was full of them — but these things were huge. They were also incredibly crisp looking, verging on the point of stiff. Quite pantsy, but cut them off just below the knees. 

Turns out, the ’90s were a big source of inspo for designer Simon Porte Jacquemus, who understands the value of exaggerated proportions better than most (his micro ‘Le Chiquito’ bag was a viral hit on Instagram when it launched in 2018, due to its ridiculously teeny size). A suntanned Giorgio Armani was on the Jacquemus moodboard, as was a photo of the Italian writer Curzio Malaparte wearing massive shorts. Malaparte built Casa Malaparte in Capri, the villa where the show was held (it actually took place on the villa’s red roof).

Then fellow French designer Marine Serre, known for building her buzzy brand from up-cycled materials, held her spring 2025 runway show at Pitti Uomo (she was the menswear fair’s official guest designer for 2024, an honour that’s bestowed annually upon the brand of tomorrow). Low and behold, the menswear looks were characterised by metallic airbrushed leather, and massive shorts! They were just as long as those we saw at Jacquemus, but they were notably swisher, comparable perhaps to a female culotte. 

In one look, they were styled over cotton boxer shorts that peeked out from the model’s waistband — a look we’ve seen before, but on shorts of a far shorter length. But my favourite pair were made from patchwork silk. They danced around the model’s kneecaps, and were styled with an excessively pointy pink collar printed with the designer’s signature crescent moon logo. A boxy black blazer, black lace-up shoes and socks that sat mid-calf added a quasi-corporate touch. 

It’s just the beginning of the men’s spring/summer 2025 shows — we still have Paris, Milan and New York to travel to — and brands like Prada, which popularised teeny tiny shorts beginning with its spring 2018 collection, could continue in this vein, because the style has been popular. 

But you know what they say about the way we dress during tough economic times? We get conservative. And there’s nothing more conservative than a pair of shorts that disguise absolutely everything, save for a small slice of your calf.