Oh, boy! Abs are back with a vengeance

Sculpted torsos are in vogue again — and it’s hellish news for men

- Maddy Mussen

LAST week, Vanity Fair dropped a photoshoot that brought together 12 of the hottest stars in showbiz as part of its annual “Hollywood Issue”. The two-page spread played host to practically every viral icon of the past year: Florence Pugh, Jeremy Allen White, Keke Palmer, Austin Butler, you name it. But all anyone could talk about was one thing. Or six things, really. Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s abs.

Taylor-Johnson’s individual portrait showed him arms outstretched touching the walls of a hallway, his unbuttoned leather coat revealing a positively ludicrous six-pack. It was like someone had yassified a packet of hot-cross buns.

ATJ’s abs broke the internet in a way usually reserved for a Kardashian rear end. And the off-the-charts reaction prompted two questions. Firstly, are abs suddenly the height of cool (again)? And if so, what does that mean for men?

There’s a lot of evidence pointing towards a rock-hard ‘yes’ on the absbeing-back front. This month saw the return of the renowned ab-spectacle that is Magic Mike, with Channing Tatum baring all for his third and final outing as lovable stripper Mike Lane. And just last week, Orlando Bloom bared his chest for Flaunt magazine.