MILAN — Archery might have been among the Olympic Games’ disciplines taking the spotlight in Paris over the weekend, but leave it to Donatella Versace to turn it into a glamorous affair.
The brand’s chief creative officer handed bow and arrow to Channing Tatum in the actor’s first campaign for the fashion house, which will be released on Tuesday. As reported last month, Tatum was tapped to be the face of the Versace Eros men’s fragrances, including the collection’s new eau de parfum pour homme Eros Energy, which joins the existing Eros and Eros Flame scents.
In the images and short video photographed and directed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, Tatum is seen as the modern version of the mythological Greek god of love that lends the name to the olfactory collection. In the campaign, his character is seen in a race against his own arrow, “that continually challenges Eros to be better, mentally and physically stronger and to achieve his previously unthinkable goals,” according to the statement released by the company.
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The race travels through different landscapes mirroring the different fragrances, moving from the burst of speed at its opening for Eros Energy to a waterfall representing the Eros scent and a vast rocky terrain nodding to the Eros Flame flanker.
“I love the strength of these images,” said Versace, defining Tatum as the perfect face for the fragrance franchise. “He is strong and determined and at the same time incredibly kind and charming. He is the modern Eros — celebrating love, power and dedication.”
“Donatella’s idea for this campaign has such a strong creative vision and real physicality. It captures the unique mix of elegance and energy that I love about Versace,” said Tatum. “To represent the Versace Eros fragrances, which have such a powerful place not just in fashion but in culture, is a great privilege, and to do so for my friend Donatella is beyond words.”
The actor has had a close friendship with the designer for years and has worn the label on multiple red carpet occasions since the late ’90s. Earlier this year, he sported Versace looks at the Met Gala, the Versace fall 2023 fashion show in Los Angeles as well as the Versace Icons dinner and Versace x Net-a-porter pre-Oscar party. Most recently, Tatum wore the label while promoting his latest movie “Fly Me to the Moon,” which costars Scarlett Johansson and spotlights the 1960s Space Race and subsequent Apollo 11 moon landing.
It is likely the actor will wear Versace during the press tour of his upcoming film “Blink Twice,” directed by his fiancé Zoë Kravitz. Set to be released on Aug. 23, the film will see Tatum star alongside the likes of Naomi Ackie, Christian Slater, Simon Rex, Adria Arjona, Kyle Maclachlan and Haley Joel Osment, to name a few.
As for the looks in the Versace campaign, Tatum was styled by Jacob K in different attires, ranging from a tailored option and a total black look accessorizing vest and pants with a studded belt and gold chains to a bolder silk shirt splashed with one of the house’s signature baroque prints.
Developed by Versace’s fragrance licensee Euroitalia, the first Eros scent was introduced in 2012. At the time, Versace decided to delve deeply into mythology in a nod to her brother and the brand’s late founder, Gianni Versace’s, love of Greek history.
Ever since, Eros became one of the brand’s signature family of scents, instantly recognizable thanks to its geometric flacon featuring quintessential Versace codes like the Medusa head and Greca motif. For the new Eros Energy fragrance, the bottle was tweaked in a yellow version topped by a bronze-colored cap.
Inspired by the Mediterranean coastline, Eros Energy is a citrus woody scent created by master perfumer Jordi Fernández. Its juice features a blend of Italian bergamot, orange, lime, lemon, grapefruit and mandarin as top notes; a mix of pink peppercorn, blackcurrant and white amber at the heart, and patchouli, musk and oakmoss at the base.
Priced between 100 euros and 155 euros, Eros Energy will launch globally starting September and will be available in the 50-ml., 100-ml. and 200-ml. sizes.
Euroitalia has been Versace’s licensee since 2005, when the two companies launched the first scent developed together: Bright Crystal. Last year, the performance of Versace fragrances especially in the U.S., China and travel retail — where sales were up 25 percent — was one of the key drivers of the record sales Euroitalia reported, which grew 24.4 percent to 857.4 million euros compared to 2022.
In addition to Versace, the Euroitalia portfolio includes licenses for Michael Kors, Moschino, Missoni, Dsquared2, Brunello Cucinelli, as well as proprietary labels such as Naj Oleari Beauty and Atkinsons 1799.