SZA’s not the only one with a “Shirt†that makes people think SOS. On Tuesday, the BBC reported that Mr. Darcy’s infamous wet shirt from the 1995 adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has sold at a charity auction in London for a stunning total price of $31,749. That’s more than double the estimated top bid that auctioneers at Kerry Taylor Auctions were expecting. Perhaps they thought that people wouldn’t be as interested since the shirt is now dry and doesn’t come clinging to Colin Firth’s body post-swim? They should’ve had more faith. This is a shirt that has built enough of a fanbase to have been honored in Shakespeare exhibitions and giant unsettling statues, after all.
Designer Dinah Collin noted in a statement on the auction house’s website that Firth’s wet-shirt scene was unscripted, and happened because on screen male nudity was “not permitted†at the time. The 1810s-style linen garment was one of 69 lots — including costumes worn by Elizabeth Taylor, Meryl Streep, Heath Ledger, Drew Barrymore, Madonna, and Julie Andrews, among others — that went up for sale. All proceeds went to the Bright Foundation, an arts-education charity for young people founded by Academy Award–winning costume designer John Bright. Mr. Darcy’s shirt emerged as the star item, which makes sense given how famously hot and bothered it has made fans. At least the horniness was harnessed for a good cause.