It’s a trend about as divisive (and seemingly oxymoronic) as they come: the naked dress. But despite their polarising potential, sheer and semi-sheer gowns crafted from lace, mesh, chain-mail and the like are everywhere on the red carpet, with A-listers donning increasingly daring looks – and attracting varying degrees of praise and criticism in the process.

But there will be no fashionable exhibitionism at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Beginning on Tuesday 13 May, there’s a new rule in the annual festival’s evening wear dress code, which states: “For decency reasons, nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as in any other area of the festival.” The Cannes “welcoming teams” will allegedly prohibit access to anyone disregarding the rules.

For fashion fans, as well as attendees, this raises a number of questions. Does a sheer dress constitute nudity? And, if it does, could this be the beginning of a wider shunning of boldly revealing outfits, sounding the death knell for a controversial trend?