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Temperatures have been soaring in parts of Europe and America this week in an unprecedented heat wave. We’re willing to bet that’s why Bullet Train star Brad Pitt went down the red carpet at the film’s premiere in Berlin rocking a brown, knee-length linen skirt.

Topped with a matching brown linen jacket over a pink shirt unbuttoned to show off some neck jewellery, Pitt completed the look with black biker boots and a pair of sunnies. With a few of his tattoos on display, he looked at ease greeting press and fans alongside his co-stars Joey King, Zazie Beats, Brian Tyree Henry, and Aaron Taylor Johnson.

Social media, as expected, was ablaze with comments flaming Pitt’s style choice. One tweeter accused the 58-year-old actor of trying hard to emulate young stars like Harry Styles, while another called him “a washed up bleached stinking beach bum”.

Those who were in favour of the actor’s daring thanked him for normalising men wearing skirts. Some others were quick to remind people that this wasn’t the first time Pitt had rocked the girly garment.

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Pitt donned an array of dresses covered in sequins and sparkles in a 1999 fashion spread shot by Mark Seliger for Rolling Stone. He also wore a leather skirt throughout his 2004 film, Troy. In a 2004 interview with British Vogue promoting Troy, Pitt prophesied, “Men will be wearing skirts by next summer. That’s my prediction and proclamation. The film answers to both genders. We were going for realism and Greeks wore skirts all the time then.”

Pitt has yet to shy away from unconventional fashion and last year told Esquire that his sense of style boils down to comfort. “You get older, you get crankier, and comfort becomes more important. I think it’s as simple as that,” he explained, adding that “it’s too exhausting to follow trends.”

Pitt’s chocolate brown outfit was custom-made by designer Haans Nicholas Mott, as are all the others Pitt has worn on the Bullet Train press tour.