Arianne Phillips Talks Costume Collaborations With Lady Gaga and Timothée Chalamet
Costume designers aren't just the people who make or choose clothing — they're storytellers whose medium happens to be fashion. And when it comes to developing characters for movies, giving them the depth and allure that makes them feel real and otherworldly at the same time, nobody does it better than Arianne Phillips. Her early work with music artists such as Lenny Kravitz and, more famously, Madonna, made her one of the most recognized creative forces in fashion and entertainment — and it helped her to develop a multidimensional approach to costumes, whether for stage, videos or iconic films like 2001's Hedwig and the Angry Inch, 2005's Walk the Line and 2019's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Reese Witherspoon called on her to design the "Time's Up" pins worn in protest of sexual harassment at the 2018 Golden Globes, which she did with designer Michael Schmidt. But her impact and influence only continue to grow. Phillips' two latest projects — music-driven films starring award-winning movie stars — mix the elements that have defined her incredible career. Warner Bros.' Joker: Folie à Deux featuring Oscar winners Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga might not have been a hit at the box office, but its unique look and style was a still a big part of its appeal. Next up, Christmas brings Searchlight's Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, with Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet in the lead role. Here, the legendary designer discusses her process, her passion for collaboration and how clothing can be the ultimate character-building tool.
What was it like working on the Joker sequel? I was a big fan of the first one and the world Todd Phillips created [with] costume designer Mark Bridges. So being invited to continue the story was thrilling and also nerve-racking. I wanted to honor the design and bring something to it — expand the world but also develop a female character in this wonderful love story that's at the center of the film. How did you create specific ensembles for Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga? For Arthur and Harley, we pretty much made everything they wore. I shopped a lot of vintage pieces that were inspirations. I leaned into the color palette and character arc of the film. Also, I aged clothes to make them look lived-in. Stefani [Gaga] was probably one of my greatest actor collaborators. We had long sessions workshopping Harley. It was more than a fitting: We would put music on and she would do her hair and makeup and take Polaroids. We would do these for hours. For me personally, I really had to disengage from so many versions of the Joker. We've seen the Joker in so many different iterations, and I really just focused on Todd and Scott's script, just in terms of the character. It's a very character-driven narrative. Being so moved by Joaquin's work, the groundwork was already laid just in terms of the development of that character. I also worked with Joaquin on Walk the Line so I think it makes a big difference when you have a relationship with an actor and there's trust involved.
A Complete Unknown captures a real person. How is that different? We're re-creating known events taking place from 1961 to 1965 — basically, Bob Dylan becoming Bob Dylan. There's always the public and the private persona. With the public persona, there's a lot of footage, interviews, photos. But we're also telling a behind-the-scenes story. Research is how you help lead the audience through this journey, so I read a lot of biographies. Identifying [Dylan's] denim — he wore jeans consistently — was a huge journey for me. Timmy [Chalamet] was really great to work with, and we did an endless amount of fittings. He had almost 65 changes. The movie takes us through his rise in the folk scene in the West Village, which was a real reflection of what was going on socially and politically, and in the youth movement at the time. After the beatnik era, which would have been the late 50s- early 60s, and the Vietnam War had started, there was a lot of expression through, you know, anti-war sentiment in the very early days. Then Bob Dylan became the Bob Dylan we know today in terms of the rock star and the poet. So a lot happens in those four years. The film is really telling that story. It ends when he famously plugs in at Newport Folk Festival, which is traditionally acoustic, He literally plugs in and there's a lot of controversy around that, but then he becomes this larger than life character.
