Nina Dobrev turned a New York City stroll into a case for the backless mule. She was seen wearing white leather shoes with rounded toes, flat soles and open backs, the kind of relaxed silhouette that looks polished without trying too hard.
The look was built around a simple summer uniform: a white T-shirt under a blue denim jacket and a miniskirt from Celine. Dobrev finished it with rounded rimless sunglasses and a white leather Bottega Veneta shoulder bag, letting the shoes do the quiet work of pulling the outfit together.
Backless mules have become one of the season’s easiest celebrity shoe choices because they sit between dressy and casual. Zoë Kravitz has worn black leather slip-ons this summer, while Emily Ratajkowski and Alexa Chung have also been seen in variations on the comfort-first style. That mix of ease and minimalism is part of the appeal: the shoe reads luxe, but it is built for movement.
The contrast shows up fast when the look is priced out. A similar pair called the Wide Toe Box Leather Mules is listed at Walmart starting at $40. It carries the same backless shape and rounded toe, with smooth white uppers, gold hardware and black rubber soles. The lower-cost version also includes no-slip soles, interior padding and arch support, turning a runway-adjacent idea into something far more accessible.
That gap between the image and the price is what makes the sighting land now. Dobrev’s outfit frames backless mules as an effortless summer luxury, but the market around them is moving in the opposite direction, toward practical features and entry-level pricing. For shoppers trying to copy the look, the bigger story is not just that the style is back. It is that the version getting attention can start at $40.
