NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� When Kristen Wiig steps out of a vintage Rolls-Royce in the opening scene of Season 2 of she鈥檚 sporting a tall, yellow, fringed hat, gold platform sandals and sunny bell bottoms, with fabric petals that sway with every determined step. It鈥檚 the first clue that the costumes on the are taking center stage.
The Apple TV show made a splash in its first season with the starry cast, high production values and ubiquitous grasshopper cocktail. Wiig鈥檚 character, Maxine, tries to break into Palm Beach high society in 1969 and bumps heads with co-stars , Allison Janney, Leslie Bibb and Laura Dern. But also playing a starring role are the vintage designer frocks that reflect each character.
For Season 2, which premiered this week, Emmy-winning costume designer Alix Friedberg says she and her team coordinated 鈥渢housands鈥� of looks that reflect the characters鈥� jet-setting style. She says 50-60% of the brightly colored and graphic print costumes are original vintage designer pieces, sourced by shoppers and costume designers.
鈥淭he looks are so iconic. Sometimes Kristen will walk in in something, and it brings tears to my eyes,鈥� Kaia Gerber 鈥� who plays Mitzi 鈥� told The Associated Press in a recent interview.
The creative process entails more than shopping
If not original vintage, Friedberg鈥檚 team builds the costumes, and if a character has to wear an outfit in multiple scenes or in big dance numbers, the team may create duplicates to preserve continuity. Friedberg says she was lucky to find so many vendors with vintage designer pieces in great condition.
鈥�(Bibb鈥檚 character) Dinah wears a few original Oscar de la Renta pieces that are really so perfect. Bill Blass was a big one, Oleg Cassini,鈥� Friedberg says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a dress that (Janney鈥檚 character) Evelyn wears that’s this all emerald green jersey, it鈥檚 an original Halston and it鈥檚 so stunning on her and it really does sort of evoke what鈥檚 to come in the ’70s.鈥�
Janney calls Friedberg 鈥渂rilliant鈥� and marveled at her talent at finding pieces that are like works of art. Some of her favorites were the characters鈥� apr猫s-ski looks in the Swiss Alps 鈥� but she finds it hard to pick an ultimate favorite.
鈥淎ll of them just make me feel divine. And the hair is just a masterpiece, and the makeup 鈥� it all goes together to just create Evelyn and I barely have to do anything,鈥� Janney says.
Costumes can be funny
The costumes also help heighten the comedy. Friedberg says Evelyn鈥檚 stoic and deadpan character elicits laughs with some of her over-the-top getups.
鈥淪he鈥檚 delivering this dialogue, these lines with, like, seven wigs on top of her,鈥� Friedberg says. 鈥淭he absurdity comes out really in how these women present themselves time and time again. 鈥� It was just so much fun to get to laugh and wink at the audience.鈥�
Burnett called costume fittings on the show 鈥済reat fun鈥� and said they helped her find her character, the scheming Norma. 鈥淚 work from the outside in. I have to know what I鈥檓 going to look like,鈥� she says.
Norma鈥檚 signature turban started as a practical idea to help Burnett save time in hair and makeup. 鈥淭he first time she put it on, we were both like, 鈥極h, that鈥檚 really so fabulous,鈥� and every time she came out as Norma without the turban, I really missed it,鈥� Friedberg says. 鈥淓ach time we built her a dress, we always had to sort of think about what the turban would be, and then it started to switch, and we started designing the turbans before the dress!鈥�
Many looks go deeper than sparkly sequins
The costumes also help set the tone for the female empowerment theme that permeates this season. 鈥淓velyn wore a lot more pants 鈥� which seems ridiculous to say today 鈥� but back then that was a real power move,鈥� Friedberg says.
Bibb had ideas to show how Dinah evolves from her trophy wife persona. 鈥淚 knew this season was about her finding sort of her own wealth without a man 鈥� and what that looked like. I always have been obsessed with Sharon Stone in 鈥楥asino,鈥欌�� Bibb says 鈥� and so they 鈥渟tole鈥� a bit of that look. 鈥淲e really have Dinah going into pantsuits and just a different sense of her and she鈥檚 really becoming her most modern self.鈥�
Friedberg conveyed the privilege and simplicity of the rich men in the series through clothing as well. Josh Lucas plays Douglas, who suffers some disappointments this season, reflected in his costumes.
鈥淲hat if we approach Douglas where he鈥檚 always been dressed by women in his life? He鈥檚 always been dressed by someone else. He鈥檚 never shopped,鈥� Lucas says he posed to Friedberg (who happens to be his sister-in-law in real life). 鈥淎nd for the first time, (his wife鈥檚) character is not doing that, so he only has three hole-filled Hawaiian shirts.鈥�
He’s in fact the rare character who repeats outfits, Friedberg notes. 鈥淵ou can kind of see them, as the series goes along, getting a little bit more and more threadbare,鈥� she says.
Gerber鈥檚 character gets a major makeover this season after coming into money. The actor gushed about Friedberg鈥檚 intentional designs as Mitzi finds her 鈥渨omanhood and her power.鈥�
鈥淚t was so fun to be able to be wearing these expensive gowns and jewelry and the hair and the makeup, and how that really sort of parallels Mitzi鈥檚 inner journey as well,鈥� she says.
The costumes may be eye candy, but Friedberg says each look also carries deeper meaning.
鈥淢axine wears this dress that was an original Oscar de la Renta dress,鈥� Friedberg says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very much something that Norma would wear, and it is saying to the audience without saying to the audience that she鈥檚 arrived, it鈥檚 her time, it鈥檚 time for her to rule.鈥�
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