“They insulted us in college. now we’re being complimented.” The goth community on TikTok is against the Burtoncore trend

on August 29, when guests descend on London’s Cineworld Leicester Square for the premiere. BeetlejuiceBeetlejuicethe atmosphere is reminiscent of a Halloween party. During the photocall, fashion designer Dilara Findikoglu appears with greasy hair, her waist cinched in a stained corset, and her legs hidden under a half-destroyed skirt. For her part, artist Bambi Thug focuses on Marilyn Manson-style makeup, while actress Winona Ryder accentuates her pale face with smoky eyes and a long, vampy black dress. At TikTok, we call this clothing style Burtoncore. An aesthetic inspired by director Tim Burton’s gothic and fantasy universe that is a hit on social media and is establishing itself as a key trend this fall-winter. But a trend that is already causing a debate.

“In middle school, they called us Morticia Addams or asked if we were going to a funeral. Now we get compliments,” 25-year-old Gwendolyn, a social media manager, tells us. Ever since college, the all-black look has been her thing. Just like Doc Martens, little strips… and Tim Burton movies. “Ten years ago, dressing up as a Tim Burton character set you apart. It allowed us not to be like others. With Burtoncore, we’ll be like everyone else.” Reactions on TikTok are the same. Many people who have been harassed in the past are upset to see their locker roomfrom the outside break into Mr. and Mrs. Everyone’s house. “Tim Burton fashion that came when you were a kid and you were bullied and called crazy because you loved this universe…”, “Burtoncore fashion when you were bullied in high school”, “Before the promotion Beetle juice you didn’t even know who Tim Burton was,” despaired several users.

“Gothic is not fashion”

A topic that content creator Morgan Winchester raises in a video posted on TikTok that has 74,000 views to date. For her, like many of her subscribers in the comments, Gothic is not just fashion. “Tim Burton was one of the only directors who represented our culture,” he assures. And continue. “Being goth is a state of mind that contradicts the norm. A vision of the world and a way of being called “marginal”. It’s not ‘poof’ to trivialize and normalize a previously derided and denigrated subculture.” The opinion shared by Mari, 24 years old, student. Since his teenage years, he has developed a very dark style, influenced by many aesthetics, including Tim Burton. “It’s frustrating because we find ourselves in fashion. The principle of alternative fashion is not to follow fashion itself, he says. People will tend to discount this style tremendously, almost normalize it.”

The rebellious Wednesday Addams, the quirky Edward Scissorhands, the late bride Emily… when you’re intimately familiar with the characters Tim Burton has imagined or reimagined, it’s really hard to imagine them falling victim to fashion. As the magazine noted Antidote In 2019, Gothic clothing is primarily a “receptacle of powerful political effects”, a “viable resistance to neoliberalism”. Generally, a modern countercultural movement like punk that was born at the same time as consumer society. The idea here is to oppose capitalism, not submit to it.

Despite everything, Morgane Winchester admits: This popularization of Burtoncore will “probably be a boon for those of us who struggle to find clothes in our style.” And yes, leather goods brand Loungefly, which specializes in pop culture accessories, has a section entirely dedicated to the Beetlejuice character. During New York Fashion Week on September 8, Philip Lim presented a series of black dresses and ensembles. When fast fashion giant H&M released an entire Wednesday Addams-inspired collection built around big bows, black dresses and Peter Pan collars. Good news, after all, according to Gwendoline. “I put myself in the place of schoolchildren. They will be able to fully master their personality. Once the trend is over, we won’t be able to criticize them anymore.