Whoever’s saying there’s a new enfant terrible in town has probably been paid well to say it. Because Duran Lanting’s debut as creative director at Jean Paul Gaultier wasn’t a revelation — it was the season’s biggest misfire. The warning signs were already there long before he got the job, and today’s show only confirmed what many were quietly thinking: this was never going to work.

Let’s start with the obvious. The collection looked like it came with a trigger warning — part fetish fantasy, part student experiment. You could almost smell the ambition. I tried to keep an open mind, I really did, but halfway through I just wanted it to end. And that’s painful to admit, because Gaultier isn’t just another brand — it’s a legacy. A love letter to the outsider spirit of fashion.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Vogue Italia (@vogueitalia)

But this time, it felt hollow. The brand’s signature provocation has been flattened into a meme — something meant to go viral rather than visceral. Even the final embrace between Lanting and Gaultier, framed as an emotional passing of the torch, felt more like theatre than truth. And those tears? Hard to tell if they were joy or disappointment.

The clothes — if you can call them that — were another story. Tailored cabans with turned-up hems, marinière leggings, sheer bodysuits that looked straight out of a performance art piece. The craftsmanship wasn’t bad, but the message was blurred. It felt like someone who studied Gaultier on Pinterest and thought that was enough.

Usually, I love seeing Leon Damm on the runway — he brings that tension, that unapologetic energy. But even he looked lost in the chaos. This wasn’t a revival of Gaultier’s erotic freedom; it was a parody of it.

Most looks bordered on caricature. You can’t help but wonder if Lanting actually approved them, or if the whole thing spiraled out of control. Because what Gaultier always understood — and what this show forgot — is that provocation means nothing without precision. He made clothes that shocked, yes, but they were also beautifully made. Here, the beauty is missing.

Walking out of the venue felt like leaving a high-concept sex shop — all sensation, no substance.

Maybe this is what fashion looks like now: a meme in motion. Or maybe it’s just a reminder that not every rebel knows what they’re rebelling against.