Charli XCX went viral today (January 15) after dropping a braless Instagram photo dump that doubled as a promotional push for her upcoming film, The Moment.
The British singer posed in a slogan crop top paired with low-rise zipped skinny jeans that put her abs on full display, and elevated the casual look with black stilettos to emphasize her figure.
Highlights
- Charli XCX went viral after posting a braless Instagram photo dump to promote The Moment.
- The mockumentary from Studio365 and A24 blends scripted satire with tour footage and industry commentary.
- The film touches upon celebrities having to manage controversy and outrage to their advantage.
Charli left little room for ambiguity about the purpose of the post, using the caption to announce the film’s rollout dates across multiple territories.
While her fans praised the post, others weren’t so surprised.
“Oh my goodness, hold the front page! A woman has gone braless to promote something, I don't think that has ever happened before!” a viewer wrote.
Charli XCX went viral after posting a braless photo to promote her upcoming film, The Moment
Image credits: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images
The photo dump serves as a direct extension of The Moment, a mockumentary produced by Charli’s Studio365 in collaboration with A24.
The film follows the singer in the lead-up to her first headline tour and places her public persona under a microscope, blending scripted satire with concert footage.
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The Moment is set to hit cinemas on February 19 in Germany, February 20 in the UK and Ireland, and March 5 in Australia.
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Through its narrative, the project explores how subculture is reshaped once it collides with commercial success.
Record executives are shown debating how to keep the energy of “brat summer” alive indefinitely, even as its creator begins to feel boxed in by the very movement she helped create.
Image credits: A24
In the trailer, released in December, Charli openly questions the phenomenon.
“Don’t you just think the whole, like, ‘keep having a Brat Summer!’ thing is a bit cringe?” she asks in the opening scene.
“The label is like ‘more brat, brat, brat, brat, brat forever,’ and you know, maybe they are right. Urgh for f*** sake.”
The film offers a look at the challenges and trials of being a celebrity through Charli XCX’s eyes
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The trailer also features a cameo from Kylie Jenner, who offers advice as Charli begins to feel the weight of fame.
“The second people are getting sick of you, that’s when you need to go even harder,” Jenner says.
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The supporting cast includes Alexander Skarsgård, Rachel Sennott, Rosanna Arquette, Kate Berlant, Jamie Demetriou, Arielle Dombasle, and Hailey Benton Gates.
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According to the official synopsis, the film “follows the life of a pop star in the lead-up to her first headline arena tour” and “gives an inside look at the inner workings of the music industry and explores how subculture is mutated by commercial success.”
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The score is composed by A. G. Cook, Charli’s longtime collaborator and the producer behind her Brat album.
That record turned Charli’s influence into a TikTok-fueled movement. The term “brat,” coined by the singer, spread rapidly and was eventually named Collins Dictionary’s Word of the Year for 2024.
Collins defined the term as being “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude,” describing it as an aesthetic movement centered on self-love and sultry style choices.
The photo dump comes after the singer attended the Golden Globes in an elegant, restrained attire
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Charli carried that cultural momentum straight into awards season. At the Golden Globes, she took a notably restrained approach to glam, opting for a polished Saint Laurent look paired with a soft, side-parted blowout.
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Her longtime hairstylist Matt Benns revealed that the inspiration behind the look was Cher.
“Our reference was Cher,” Benns told NYLON. “There’s a really beautiful photograph of her taken back in the ’90s in one of these perfect offset moments.
“I believe it was on set from one of her films. Her hair is the reference, though a little less bouncy. This year the blowout is back and coming with a vengeance.”
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Benns detailed the process step by step, from prepping the hair with Tresemmé’s A-List All-In-One Style Primer and Smoothing Cream to setting waves with a medium-sized tong and workable hairspray.
"Icon vibes." Charli's fans celebrated the photo dump on social media
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