As the creative director of Chanel, Matthieu Blazy enlisted Alec Soth for his inaugural Spring 2026 campaign. The French-Belgian designer collaborated with Craig McDean to photograph Margot Robbie for the Chanel 25 handbag series, along with the Spring 2026 Chanel Eyewear campaign. Julien Martinez Leclerc was chosen for the Chanel Coco Beach 2026 campaign, while McDean returns for the Pre-Fall 2026 season. Reflecting the chosen city for the show presentation last December, McDean captured the accompanying campaign in New York City. Models Anne Vyalitsyna, Anok Yai, Bhavitha Mandava, Feng Jiao Long, Jesi Evans, Josephen Akuei, Julia Nobis, Penelope Ternes, and Riley Lusher appeared at various locations throughout The Big Apple in this cinematic campaign.
The Chanel Pre-Fall 2026 Campaign by Craig McDean
Read below the reactions of theFashionSpot’s forum members:
“Not into it,” immediately admitted jeremydante.
“Why does everything look so AI?” asked fashionsavvvvvy.
TianCouture echoed: “There is something so incredibly AI about this that it almost makes me feel ill.”
“I like the concept but the execution is a bit off-putting,” shared forum member fruitdots.
“Feels very heavy, contrasting with the casual feeling they are trying to build. The styling and the color grading are just way too much,” critiqued grimesisnotmymother.
“Blazy’s Chanel is so forcefully happy it’s irritating. Why is everyone smiling? What irks me most is the fact that the smiles don’t even come across as genuine,” noted pradabananas.
See more of the Chanel Pre-Fall 2026 campaign and click here to join the conversation.
