We’re Living in the Golden Age of Men’s Shorts
What a surfeit of leg-baring styles says about fashion today.
From left: Shorts on the Spring 2025 Todd Snyder runway; on Pharell Williams and Paul Mescal; and in the Ralph Lauren Purple Label Spring 2025 collection.
Illustration by 731. Photos: Companies (2) Getty (2)
In 2011, Tom Ford proclaimed that “a man should never wear shorts in the city.” With all due respect to the supremely suave designer, those days are long gone.
It’s been two years since Pedro Pascal broke one of fashion’s last commandments at the Met Gala, wearing above-the-knee shorts with boots and a red Valentino coat. Aussie Jacob Elordi—all 6 feet, 5 inches of him—followed suit at the brand’s spring 2024 runway show, pairing thigh-baring shorts with a tie and leather blazer. Fashion risk-takers Chris Pine, Colman Domingo and Pharrell Williams have since worn them on the red carpet. Off duty, Paul Mescal and Donald Glover often go viral on social media with shorts that can only be described as skimpy.