Hot on the heels of multiple blockbuster hits and a cultural chokehold on off-duty style this year, leading frontman, Jacob Elordi is taking on his latest starring role as the face of Bottega Veneta in the house’s latest campaign, What Are Dreams. While best known for his breakout performances and era-defining roles, the casting lands as no surprise to those who’ve clocked his growing sway over the modern menswear moodboard.
After all, few actors have cultivated such a following for their street style as Jacob Elordi. His name pops up in TikTok fashion recreations attempting to emulate his slouchy-cool sense of understated refinement. His offhand combinations of high-low staples have been pinned across digital moodboards for future OOTD inspo. His everyday uniform feels almost immune to trend, scrollers often asking, “Was this taken in the nineties, the noughties, or today?” In fact, an amalgamation of his airport looks and impromptu paparazzi snaps became the IYKYK Halloween costume of the season (read: slouchy light-wash denim, a nondescript pullover, a comfy loafer, a casual baseball cap, and a neutral-toned woven Bottega tote). Simple to some, effortlessly aspirational to others.
Like Elordi, few brands have ascended to cult classic status with such quiet conviction. The house prizes legacy over logos, its signature Intrecciato weaving over trendy textiles, and enduring craftsmanship above hype spectacle. This trademark formula has yielded a body of work existing in the liminal space between what’s real and what’s remembered.
It’s precisely this spell that comes to life in What Are Dreams, the house’s latest campaign starring the inimitable brand ambassador. Shot entirely in black and white by legendary lensman, Duane Michals, inside his New York home, the campaign unfolds across 14 enigmatic snapshots. Just like its famed interplay of surrealism and low-key suavity, Bottega weaves into the fabric of Michals’ poetic universe: Elordi reclines mid-read (his apt literature of choice? Stay tuned). Elordi cradles lilies with contemplative care. Elordi tracks a floating feather like it might reveal a secret. In one particularly meta twist, the award-winning actor watches a marionette, too distracted to realize that it’s Michals pulling the strings. Perhaps there’s some metaphor to be extracted from that.
The accompanying short film draws the viewer even deeper into Elordi’s trance. Scored by the actor’s velvety narration of Michals’ 2001 poem “What Are Dreams,” Elordi blurs the line between consciousness and couture. The actor participates in a visual riddle that folds time, perception, and memory into a single meditative rhythm. He circles a mannequin in deep contemplation of the “slumbering plane,” ogles his reflection refracted in a warped mirror, and traces his hands across a crystal ball, meditating on lucid metaphysics.
In true Michals fashion, the film doesn’t resolve. Instead, it lingers like the daytime recollection of a vivid nocturnal slumber. What did I just witness? And even more, what does it mean for me? Mission accomplished, Mr. Michals.
For fashion fans alike, the collaboration itself is a bridge between eras: Michals first photographed Bottega back in 1985, and nearly four decades later, Elordi brings the house into a new generation. Through both cinematic stars’ powers, they distill Bottega’s ethos into something both nostalgic and new, sans loud declarations and forced statements. Because mystery, it turns out, never goes out of style.
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