Celebrities defend Harry Styles’ Vogue cover after conservative activist complains society lacks ‘manly men’

Right-wing author Candace Owens called the pictures an ‘outright attack’

(Rex Features)

Stars across the world are coming to the support of Harry Styles – whose historic moment as the first man to grace the cover of US Vogue Magazine has been faced with criticism because he was wearing a dress.

American conservative commentator Candace Owens posted a criticism of the cover and shoot on Twitter, calling it an “outright attack” and stating society should “bring back manly men". 

“There is no society that can survive without strong men," she tweeted. The East knows this. In the west, the steady feminization of our men at the same time that Marxism is being taught to our children is not a coincidence.”

The One Direction singer is shown on the December cover wearing a pale blue lace Gucci ballgown and black tuxedo jacket, photographed by Tyler Mitchell.

Lord of the Rings actor Elijah Wood has posted his support for Styles on Owens’ thread: “I think you've missed the definition of what a man is. masculinity alone does not make a man. In fact it’s got nothing to do with it”. 

Olivia Wilde – who is currently directing Styles in upcoming movie Don’t Worry Darling – called Owens “pathetic”. She went on to praise the One Direction star’s “confidence” as part of the Vogue feature.

“I hope that this brand of confidence as a male that Harry has—truly devoid of any traces of toxic masculinity — is indicative of his generation and therefore the future of the world,” she said.

Zach Braff also posted his support on Twitter: "Our whole lives boys and men are told we need to be manly. Life is short. Be whatever the f**k you want to be." 

Actress and activist Jameela Jamil hit back at Owens, stating that Styles’ is a great example of masculinity. “Harry Styles is plenty manly, because manly is whatever you want it to be,” she posted. “He's 104% perfect.”

Owens has hit back at her critics already, who have also taken to posting pictures of famous men in dresses throughout pop culture history – including David Bowie, Kurt Cobain and Iggy Pop – stating that she’s “impervious to woke culture”. "Showing me 50 examples of something won’t make it any less stupid,” she added.

In the interview, Styles gave Bowie, Elvis, Prince and Freddie Mercury as examples of people he looked up to in music – because they were “showmen”.

He also suggested that the separation of clothes for women and men just acted as limiting barriers. “When you take away ‘There’s clothes for men and there’s clothes for women,’ once you remove any barriers, obviously you open up the arena in which you can play," he said. 

“It’s like anything — anytime you’re putting barriers up in your own life, you’re just limiting yourself.

“There's so much joy to be had in playing with clothes,” he added. "I've never really thought too much about what it means – it just becomes this extended part of creating something."