Paul Mescal AKA king of short shorts is our summer style icon
When Paul Mescal was photographed sitting front row at the Gucci Men's Spring Summer 2025 Fashion Show during Milan Fashion Week wearing a light blue button-down shirt, white striped boxer-style shorts, white mid-calf socks and black horsebit loafers, it didn't take long for the picture to quickly go viral. And, as per usual, the internet had thoughts.
Besotted Paul fans collectively swooned, crowning him the "king of short shorts" and declaring "I love paul mescal and his slutty little shorts". And here on the Cosmo fashion desk, we're inclined to agree.
As with all trends, not everyone was a fan. At the opposite end of the spectrum, his head-to-toe look courtesy of the Italian fashion house had some social media users comparing his short shorts to a nappy, with one person commenting on Instagram, "When your child dresses themselves 😂". Meanwhile, another person wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "When you’re WFH and have a meeting over Zoom." with a second echoing the sentiment in a comment that read, "Looks like he forgot to put his trousers on".
Of course, this isn't a new look for the Normal People star. Since taking on the role of Connell cast him firmly into the limelight, Paul has been photographed on multiple occasions sporting his go-to three-inch Gaelic football shorts. His beloved O'Neill's form the central part of his off-duty uniform too, whether picking up a packet of prawn cocktail crisps from his local Co-Op or out for a run. He even modelled his short shorts, paired with an Hermès pullover, for GQ back in 2020.
His latest short shorts debut has elevated the look though, veering away from the athleisure style of his previous iterations. Instead, Paul has found himself bang on trend. As well as an overwhelming number of male models sent down the Gucci SS25 runway dressed in a pair of shorts with hemlines that grazed the upper thigh, micro shorts were on the SS24 agenda at Stella McCartney, Max Mara, Isabel Marant and Chanel.
And, thanks to the boxer-like design of Paul's Gucci pair tap into another trend the fashion set can't get enough of: underwear-as-outerwear. Not to mention, away from the runways, the trend has also been picked up by the style set.
We need only open Instagram, TikTok or Pinterest to see this look replicated to a tee. Oversized shirts styled with baggy boxer shorts is the summer ensemble many a fashion girlie is already rocking this summer. Ideal for summer holiday dressing, simply throw it on for an effortless but pulled-together beach cover-up, transitioning seamlessly from the beach to the bar. Or, as the case may be, the park to the beer garden. Trust us, it works just as well.
Or, if you want to honour Paul's OG short shorts, you can't go wrong with a pair of PE-style activewear shorts. Thanks to the athleisure takeover, it's now fully acceptable to wear your gym gear absolutely everywhere. Plus, with the Euros practically mandatory viewing in the UK right now, it's a more subtle way to channel your inner Sporty Spice than wearing a football jersey.
In short (no pun intended), Paul Mescal has out Mescal'd himself. Consider this permission for anyone and everyone to flash a little more leg this summer. As for how short you dare to go? Well, the thigh's the limit.
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