Leather clothing, lace-up corsets and very graphic public displays of affection might be something that was once left to raunchy members clubs.
But these have all appeared on sexed up red carpets and on A-list social media feeds in recent weeks – as a new phenomenon dubbed ‘Horny Girl Autumn’ has taken over Hollywood’s elite.
Leading the way of the sexed-up celebs is Megan Fox – who is no stranger to packing on the PDA with her rapper boyfriend Machine Gun Kelly. Megan, along with the likes of Kim and Kourtney Kardashian are shaping a ‘new wave of feminism’ according to a top brand expert.
At this weekend’s MTV VMAs – Megan and MGK posed for a very suggestive snap from the men’s toilets of the Barclays Center in New York with their couple pals Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker joining them for a raunchy embrace.
Just hours earlier, Megan and Kourtney had introduced their boyfriends – who were performing together – as their ‘future baby daddies’.
Get ready for Horny Girl Autumn! At this weekend’s MTV VMAs – Megan and MGK posed for a very suggestive snap from the men’s toilets of the Barclays Center in New York with their couple pals Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker joining them for a raunchy embrace
And last week, the Jennifer’s Body actress shared a sultry snap in a bra and tiny skirt posing in front of a dinner table. With the snap she wrote: ‘When I tell you that the table at this air bnb saw some things’ with her beau suggestively replying ‘I’m really glad that’s not our table anymore’.
‘The Celeb PDA phenomenon is an interesting one. As pointed out we are seeing an increasing number of celebs engaging in PDAs and being explicit online,’ brand expert Brenda Gabriel told FEMAIL.
‘Kourtney Kardashian in particular has seen her market value rocket since the very PDA between her and Travis.
‘I think there are several reasons that Horny Girl Autumn this became a thing.
‘In many ways the trend appears to be a new wave of feminism,’ she added.
‘Not dissimilar to what we see every decade. In the 90s we had the Spice Girls with in your face Girl Power. Women who weren’t afraid to go after what they wanted and weren’t afraid to be vocal about it
‘By 2016 we had Kim K, Beyonce, Rihanna and leading the way for women to own their hotness regardless of what anyone else had to say. Remember that selfie where Kim and Emily Ratajkowski took on take on body shamers with a very NSFW bathroom snap?
Leather clothing, lace-up corsets and very graphic public displays of affection might be something that was once left to raunchy members clubs. But these have all appeared on sexed up red carpets and on A-list social media feeds in recent weeks – as a new phenomenon dubbed ‘Horny Girl Autumn’ has taken over Hollywood’s elite. Madonna is pictured at the VMAs
Kourtney and Travis (pictured together) have been packing on the PDA since they got together in August
Last week, the Jennifer’s Body actress shared a sultry snap in a bra and tiny skirt posing in front of a dinner table. With the snap she wrote: ‘When I tell you that the table at this air bnb saw some things’ with her beau suggestively replying ‘I’m really glad that’s not our table anymore’.
‘With the #meetoo movement, we saw women come together in solidarity over shared experiences of sexual harassment.
‘With this solidarity we saw a shift from victim/slut shaming to women refusing to take on the outdated societal perceptions and expectations. Women’s sexuality and sex was something that had always ‘belonged’ to men.
‘#Metoo wasn’t just an opportunity for pulling back the curtain on inequality, it provided an opportunity for women to take back female sexuality and be unapologetic about it.
The trend has taken off so much, Bumble have branded it the age of ‘Power PDA’.
Loved up: After getting in her red carpet moment, Jennifer was spotted locking lips with her rekindled flame Ben Affleck , 49
Couple goals: Jennifer Lopez made her first red carpet appearance with her beau Ben Affleck since their reunion at the star-studded The Last Duel premiere during Venice Film Festival 2021
Kissing are you? The actress, 26, took to the photo-sharing site to share a pair of snaps with the 22-year-old son of Victoria and David Beckham, draped around her other half in one image, and planting a kiss on his lips in the other
Megan Fox and Ashanti took to the red carpet in next to nothing at the Barclays Center in New York for the VMAs
Data from the dating app shows that shows that people are looking to pack in the PDA too, with the ‘kiss’ and ‘heart’ emojis being the most used in bios.
Over the top displays of affection are happening on this side of the Atlantic too, proving it’s not just a Hollywood trend.
Line of Duty start Martin Compston and his wife Tianna Chanel Flynn were told to ‘get a room’ at the National Television Awards last week.
The aspiring American actress became a viral sensation as viewers watched in astonishment at her very public display of affection towards her husband, 37.
Travis Barker was share a snap passionately kissing his girlfriend Kourtney Kardashian in a photoset that he uploaded to commemorate her 42nd birthday
Doubling down: The Blink-182 drummer added another shot of the two making out, although the photo came out with a much deeper orange hue
Centre: Martin Compston’s wife Tianna stole the show as she got up on stage when Line Of Duty accepted their gong at the National Television Awards, held at the 02 on Thursday night
And it’s not just PDAs – at Monday’s Met Gala, Kim Kardashian, who is known for her risque choices donned a gimp suit.
And the night before, Megan Fox, Ciara, Ashanti and Charli XCX all took to the red carpet in next to nothing at the Barclays Center in New York for the VMAs.
Madonna , 63, also joined in the trend, kicking off the tone for the night in a BDSM-inspired PVC look.
Balenciaga, who made Kim’s gimp mask get-up for the Met Gala and for the Donda listening party earlier this month seems to be leading the way for high-end designer wear.
But their not the only fashion house to jump on the BDSM bandwagon: Gucci’s latest campaign features a model, in nothing but a pair of boot and a leather whip.
The trend has translated to the High Street shopper too – with searches for ‘lace up’ surging 308 per cent online fast fashion juggernaut Boohoo.
Nothing’s off limits: Travis even shared a very graphic clip of Kourtney sucking on his thumb on her birthday last year
Happy couple: Brooklyn and Nicola confirmed their engagement in July 2020 and often post PDA packed pic
In May, Rita Ora showed how her relationship with her boyfriend Taika Waititi’s appeared to be hotting up as they packed on the PDA and put on a cosy display with Tessa Thompson
So in love: She wasn’t invited to the Monday night’s Met Gala, despite sisters Kim Kardashian and Kendall Jenner and mom Kris Jenner all attending. Nevertheless, Kourtney Kardashian did not seem the least bit concerned about missing the annual fashion event while enjoying a romantic moment with her boyfriend Travis Barker
Like no one is watching: Justin Bieber didn’t hold back as he kissed his wife Hailey last week
Back on! Laura Anderson and Dane Bowers confirmed they were very much together as they packed on the PDAs on the red carpet if the National Television Awards at London’s 02 Arena on Thursday
Lou Austin co-owner at Fetishwear site MegaPleasure agrees the looks are becoming more mainstream.
‘Kim Kardashian is far from the first celebrity to flirt with fetish wear,’ he told FEMAIL.
‘Vivienne Westwood gained a huge following when she took bondage pants from the bedroom to the streets and invented the iconic 1977 punk look.
‘More recently in 2009 Lady Gaga met the queen in a red latex dress by Atsuko Kudo, the very same year the Japanese designer won a European Fetish Award. The dramatic photo op wasn’t Gaga’s only brush with fetishwear that year, she also wore a gimp mask to the MTV Isle of Malta festival.
‘Kim isn’t even the first celebrity to take the full gimp suit mainstream, in 2020 Cardi B stunned fans in Paris with a full couture gimp suit designed by cult French brand Marine Serre.
Balenciaga, who made Kim’s gimp mask get-up for the Met Gala and for the Donda listening party earlier this month seems to be leading the way for high-end designer wear.
Sizzling: Megan Fox stunned in a red Dundas gown during Monday night’s Met Gala – since sales of lace-up wear have surged 300% at Boohoo
Loved up: Kourtney and Travis took their relationship pubic on Valentine’s Day this year, though the two had been friends for years before that
Meanwhile, Kim’s sister Kourtney has lead the way of the graphic PDAs with her blink-182 drummer boyfriend.
Kravis – who announced their relationship in January after being friends for years – recently went on a PDA-packed trip to Italy, sharing photos kissing on the back of a gondola.
In another picture, Kourtney lies across Travis on the back of a boat, while she happily jumped into his arms and wrapped his arms around him in front of their private plane in one Instagram snap.
Travis even shared a very graphic clip of Kourtney sucking on his thumb on her birthday last year.
Instant connection: Megan and MGK began their relationship in the spring of 2020, shortly after they met on the set of their thriller Midnights In The Switchgrass
And some aren’t even afraid to of a three-way PDA. in May, Rita Ora showed how her relationship with her boyfriend Taika Waititi’s appeared to be hotting up as they packed on the PDA and put on a cosy display with Tessa Thompson
‘In many ways this was the precursor of Hot Girl Summer. Women having fun, chasing that bag, not needing a man to validate them,’ Brenda added.
‘This is great for the single/independent woman narrative, but what about if you’re a grown woman, who likes spending lots a of time with your man. Not because you’re incomplete without him, because you can’t keep your hands of him?
‘Horny Girl Autumn is like the grown up version of Hot Girl Summer.
‘Until now, women have always been seen as the ‘trophy’ of their male partners.
‘Horny Girl Autumn seems to turn that notion on its head. Kourtney, Meghan and JLo aren’t anyone’s trophy. They’re powerful woman who are sexually confident and don’t care who knows it.’
Smooch: The couple couldn’t keep their hands off one-another at the VMAs last week
Jennifer Lopez, who recently rekindled her romance with Ben Affleck, is also not afraid to show off her romance. The couple packed on the PDA at the Venice Film Festival last week before moving their public smooching to New York’s Red Carpets this week.
As well as women embracing ownership of their bodies – the sexed-up public appearances may also be a result of spending too much time locked down.
‘Celeb PDAs have always attracted media attention. Nothing sells better than sex – and after a 18 months of many of us having having to go celebrate due to the state of the world, this has been the first time in months that people are in a position to hook up. We missed a whole cuffing season, having to make do with Zoom dating and cosy nights alone,’ Brenda added.
Wow factor: Kourtney Kardashian took to Instagram to share some sultry snaps of herself in a revealing see-through number on Tuesday
‘Showing off wealth is so pre-pandemic. What else could celebs possibly sell us the dream of? Great sex!
‘PDAs and the emotions conveyed make celebs appear more accessible, more human – their lives more attainable. We no longer have to worry about becoming wealthy enough to afford a celeb handbag, we just need to improve our sex lives.
‘If there’s one thing that we’re fascinated about as a nation, it’s how much sex everyone else is getting.
How the high street copied the trend
Chain deco body harness, £6.49, Shein
Imitation leather top, £19.99, H&M
Lace-up choker, £13, Dollskill
Black faux leather corset crop top, £26.99, Quiz
Leather belted trench mini dress, £303.20, Karen Millen
‘Many of us don’t feel like we’re getting enough and if we are, it doesn’t seem anywhere near as exciting as that of Kourtney or Megan Fox and even if it is, we aren’t going to share those details on social media. What would be TMI for us, is ‘we can’t get enough’ for celebs.
‘We could be forgiven for believing that we are getting a sneak peak into the intimate love lives of our favourite celebs. However if we take some of Kourtney’s recent ‘candid reportage’ snaps with Travis, we’ll note that most photos have been taken by a bystander, avoiding any unflattering poses.
‘The photo of Kourtney on the yacht, kneeling up to Travis in a passionate kiss is a perfect example of this. Kourtney adopted ‘ he rather uncomfortable Bambi’ pose (favoured by influencers when wearing a swimsuit, because of the way it flatters the body accentuating natural curves in a swim suit, avoiding tummy creasing).
‘What this demonstrates is that behind every seemingly carefree PDA photo is someone charged with getting the shot right.
‘In many ways, PDAs are a great way to ‘live’ on brand whilst remaining relevant.
‘Whilst cuffing season may be is on its way in, I don’t believe there’s a connection between that and increased PDAs from celebs which I believe – for the foreseeable are here to stay.’
Saffron Rizzo, celebrity publicist and founder of London agency RIZZO PR, says that it’s social media leading the way of extreme PDAs.
‘If you look back in time extreme celebrity PDA’s are nothing out the ordinary, take Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson, Angelina Jolie and Billy-Bob Thornton even Madonna and Britney.
‘However pre social media, we would have to wait for those iconic “red carpet” moments, at a film premier, awards show or Hollywood party.
‘Celebrities these days on the other hand no longer need to rely on such events to create headlines, they’re able to create their own, whenever and wherever they want.
‘Through social media celebrities such as Megan Fox and Kourtney Kardashian are carefully curating and publishing their own iconic moments which they know will go viral within a of matter minutes.
‘Whether that’s through a risqué outfit choice, extreme PDA or even an elusive Instagram caption, they know how to captivate their audiences and keep us emotionally invested in their lives and love stories – Whether you buy into it is up to you…
‘Such extreme public displays of affection are nothing more than a cleverly masterminded PR stunt by the celebrities and their teams.
‘The risker the PDA or pose the more headlines the images will create, therefore generating free publicity for those involved.
‘In a time where boundaries are constantly being pushed in order to stand out from the diluted world of showbiz and with a new generation of celebrities rapidly taking over – it’s becoming increasing more difficult to stay relevant in such a continually competitive industry.
‘There is also a seemingly obvious pattern to this trend, which sees Megan, Kourtney and JLO all becoming so public post their recent break-ups.
‘Being seen with a new partner in public having the time of your life and divulging in risqué antics will not only grab the media’s attention but that of their ex’s too, which no doubt goes unnoticed. So-called ‘celebrity cougars’, such as Mel Sykes, Demi Moore and Madonna have also been victim to the PDA PR stunt post their public breakups.’