The haircut of Mr Robot’s Elliot Alderson, worn under a conspiratorial black hoodie, has become the ’do of the season. Paper-thin on the sides and long on the crown, it highlights the character’s inner angst and the angles of actor Rami Malek’s face. It is hair worn as a prop, tailormade for HD streaming.
Recently, the Mr Robot has been seen on Ronaldo at Euro 2016 (with an added serrated swipe), on Love Island’s Tom Powell and on Frank Ocean. Essentially a short back and sides with the beginnings of a pompadour top, it is also related to an undercut.
The undercut is a men’s hair perennial. The ’do straddles two extremes, both militarily precise and shaggily rebellious. Of the former, the historical examples are bleak: Kim Jong-un and army officers. Of the latter, we have the grown-out version of the style adopted by Skrillex. Neither are particularly desirable, but as a compromise you get a Mr Robot: streamlined and precise with an air of cool modernity.
