Did the Minions save the formal suit?

Have you heard of the Gentleminions? Arrays of young boys - ages range between 13 and 17 - who began crowding U.S. theaters on the occasion of the theatrical release of Minions 2 - How Gru Becomes a Villain with a detail that makes the affair particularly relevant: all the boys in question, as seen from the many TikToks online, showed up in the theaters lining up wearing a jacket and tie. A choice that most likely arose from the outfit of Gru, the antihero protagonist of the film, but also from the contrast that can come from the idea of going to see an animated film for children with what, in the collective imagination, is the uniform of the adult man. While Universal itself initially thanked the Gentleminions for their affection for the film, in recent days many U.S. theaters have begun banning entry to the theater in a formal suit, effectively putting a stop to what, quite unexpectedly, had become the closest relationship between Gen Z and tailoring. 

Between a pandemic and a latest wave of streetwear, Gen Z's relationship with elongated suits has always been complicated enough to lead to a redefinition of the suit itself, which has become less and less formal and more and more in tune with the needs and tastes of the new generations. But if only a few days ago we were reflecting on the role of the tie, all it took was a group of teenagers with an obsession with Despicable Me to rekindle a passion that perhaps just needed the right stimulus. Between memes and blowback, Gentleminion's is really just yet another proof of how cinema, in many cases, is increasingly marrying meme aesthetics to incentivize audiences to return to theaters. We saw it with Minions 2, and we will most likely see it with the upcoming Barbie movie, which has already featured a very long list of memes. 

Whether this is a passing trend or a true return of the formal, menswear brands would do well to seize the opportunity to try to bring Gen Z closer to a concept of elegance that in the imagination of younger generations belongs solely to businessmen and villains in animated films. Also because, looking at the collections of designers specializing in menswear, the formal suit continues to be one of the proposals that creatives do not want to give up. And memes, paradoxically, could be a key to bring young people closer to a garment deemed too serious and unfunny.