See inside Pirelli’s star-studded 2017 Calendar

Photographed by highly acclaimed fashion photographer, Peter Lindbergh, the 2017 Pirelli Calendar has been shot in Lindbergh's signature raw, compelling style. According to Lindbergh speaking on the Pirelli website, the brief was to "convey personality, sensitivity and the guts to be yourself," and from the first tranche of raw, emotive imagery his words ring true.

The calendar is known for high octane glamour and, well, nudity, but in true disrupter style, Lindbergh has bucked the prevalent Victoria's Secret-led trend for featuring only perfect 10 models and instead aimed, "...not to shoot a calendar about perfect bodies but to capture sensitivity and emotion, laying bare the souls of the women in the images, rendering them more naked than a nude."

This is the 44th edition of the Pirelli Calendar and it's still as relevant as ever featuring a who's who of Hollywood's award-winning leading ladies: Jessica Chastain, Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Rooney Mara, Helen Mirren, Julianne Moore, Lupita Nyong'o, Charlotte Rampling, Lea Seydoux, Uma Thurman, Alicia Vikander, Kate Winslet, Robin Wright and Zhang Ziyi.

Watch behind the scenes footage of the making of the Pirelli Calendar 2017: