TV series have replaced influencers

«In the fourth quarter, on-screen style continued to set the agenda», reads the latest report by Lyst. For example, over the past year, the incredible buzz that has surrounded House of Gucci has made Gucci's Horsebit moccasins the most sought-after menswear products while Succession, And Just Like That, Emily in Paris and Squid Game have led to an increase in demand for many of the items worn by their protagonists: ranging from the blue Loro Piana cap to the Vans Slip-On and Fendi and Lanvin bags. Still on the entertainment side, the collaboration between Balenciaga and The Simpsons helped make the brand the most sought-after of the quarter worldwide – a demonstration of an increasingly strong symbiosis between fashion and entertainment that has also led the fashion industry, for example, to continue to support the world of premieres and red carpets even in a historical moment in which hollywood awards have been overwhelmed by controversy,  deserted from the audience and decayed in their relevance. 

But as the front row of Kenzo's latest show has shown, in fashion as well as in pop culture more generally, celebrities still possess enormous power – and that's why the fashion industry, after a drift towards the world of influencers, has returned to court entertainment and the world of screens. And in fact the fashion world has courted and reflected on the figure of the celebrity and the power that storytelling has to arouse desire throughout the year – ranging from the meta-reality show set up by Balenciaga and Kanye West, to the Hollywood show of Gucci, passing through the mix of young and old actors of the last Prada show and for the appearances of the various Tyler, The Creator, Pusha T and Machine Gun Kelly throughout fashion week. If once having influencers in the front row was in, now you have to replace them all with "real" celebrities (Lucien Laviscount of Emily in Paris, for example, has been everywhere in this fashion season) and maybe have some VIPs also on the catwalk and in their own campaigns, demonstrating cultural know-how and aiming at the viral video on Instagram.

The data also reflect a broader change that has taken place in pop culture and that has led to a transformation of the previous dynamic that existed between TV series and cinema, which have now become equivalent products, with the series that however are about to dub the cinema overcoming its limits: the series is a much more easily consumable product of the film,  it has the same degree of artistic elevation and can also last much longer, with new episodes coming out every week – without having to suffer the anguish of the box office and the tickets sold. This is why the wall that separates movie stars from TV stars has become increasingly permeable: Nicole Kidman is perhaps the star who has surpassed him most often of all, but also actors such as Zendaya, Oscar Isaac, Kate Winslet and Adrien Brody coexist on two spheres that, before, did not communicate so often. This process is now also happening in the field of music, with for example Kid Cudi starting to get actor roles, and in general is seeing the classic star replace the now decadent figure of the mercenary influencer.