How Dynasty’s Costume Designer Conjures the 1980s
Photo: Mark Hill/The CW
Could there be a more appropriate time to bring back the over-the-top ’80s soap opera Dynasty? Sure, the American public has its own power-hungry family dynasty at the wheel, but at least we’ve got a taste of escapism thanks to the Colbys and Carringtons, who are back on the CW as a younger, fresher, but no less brash crew. Of course, it wouldn’t be Dynasty without iconic outfits drawing inspiration from the best of ’80s fashion, and for that we have to thank designer Meredith Markworth-Pollack.
Markworth-Pollack, whose previous work includes Reign and Hart of Dixie, worked closely with co-stars Elizabeth Gillies (Fallon Carrington) and Nathalie Kelley (Cristal Flores) on their characters’ specific looks, which run the gamut from power suits to jumpers and back again. Markworth-Pollack’s work pays homage to the original Dynasty costume designer, the late Nolan Miller, while putting a 21st-century spin on the iconic TV wardrobe.
“The two female characters are so different, so we’re really setting up these two different stories, these two different worlds,” Markworth-Pollack told the Cut. “Fallon is bolder. She’s less afraid because she’s born into this money and therefore has the liberty to be many different things,” she explained. Cristal, on the other hand, is “a little bit older. She’s a working woman, so she’s more aware of her role in the family, of her role in society, and I think she puts more thought into what she wears. She’s slightly more refined in some ways than Fallon.”
Markworth-Pollack and Flores worked together on selecting Latinx designers specifically for Cristal, since that’s a choice her character would make. “It’s been a really fun experience so far, and I have really loved the actresses,” the designer said. “We’re all sharing references and talking through the characters together.” Click through the slideshow to hear about key costumes from the first five episodes.
Dynasty airs Wednesday nights on the CW at 9 p.m.
I knew for the pilot we had to have our hat moment. Dynasty, the original, was full of hats. I reached out to Gladys Tamez Millinery in Los Angeles, a...
I knew for the pilot we had to have our hat moment. Dynasty, the original, was full of hats. I reached out to Gladys Tamez Millinery in Los Angeles, and we shared a bunch of references, mostly Bianca Jagger, who is our big Cristal reference. Gladys made this hat with a stiff brim so it wouldn’t obstruct her face. Cristal is wearing a Giambattista Valli skirt with an attached cape, and it just felt perfect to me as a subtle nod to Bianca Jagger's wedding suit. I wanted to make sure they had this iconic travel look where they’ve changed out of their bridal looks into their travel looks, which feels very specific for that world. Not everybody has the luxury of doing that on their wedding day.
Photo: Mark Hill/Photo by Mark Hill © 2017 THE C
In the original Dynasty, Fallon wore a black-and-white dress to Krystle and Blake’s wedding, so we wanted to find a black-and-white dress. When w...
In the original Dynasty, Fallon wore a black-and-white dress to Krystle and Blake’s wedding, so we wanted to find a black-and-white dress. When we found this Mugler dress, it was a no-brainer. It’s fun, it’s sexy, it’s a bit of a statement without drawing too much attention. This is a nice little Easter egg. As the episodes go on, viewers can see the little nods that we’re doing to the original.
Photo: Mark Hill/Mark Hill/The CW
I loved the silk blouse and pant combos from the original. A lot of the time they were matching sets, but this felt like a contemporary twist. Fallon’...
I loved the silk blouse and pant combos from the original. A lot of the time they were matching sets, but this felt like a contemporary twist. Fallon’s wearing a dog-print blouse by Stella McCartney and her wool pants are by Roland Mouret. Rob Riley, who plays Michael Culhane, is just in his Topshop tank and jeans. The driver in the original was always in a suit and tie, always buttoned up, but this is him off-duty.
Photo: Bob Mahoney/Bob Mahoney/The CW
This is from our second episode. Fallon’s attending a funeral. I was like, this is a hat moment! I again reached out to Gladys Tamez because her wor...
This is from our second episode. Fallon’s attending a funeral. I was like, this is a hat moment! I again reached out to Gladys Tamez because her work is so beautiful and she’s really film- and TV-friendly. I was like, Let’s get a veil in there! Because one of the top iconic photos from the original is Joan Collins and the hat with the veil, and with Fallon, our mindset is often either that she's wearing something of her mother's, or she's emulating her fashion. She’s in a Saint Laurent black tuxedo romper, which also had kind a nice ‘80s touch to it.
Photo: Bob Mahoney/Bob Mahoney/The CW
That suit was from Ralph Lauren. I walked into Ralph Lauren and it was just this sea of beautiful cream and gold and knits, and then all of a sudden t...
That suit was from Ralph Lauren. I walked into Ralph Lauren and it was just this sea of beautiful cream and gold and knits, and then all of a sudden this bright satin purple suit was hanging in the back. And of course, I loved it, and so did Liz. Suiting is one of those ‘80s statements that we definitely wanted to see on the show, and it's been nice because it’s kind of having a revival. There’s a lot of people doing interesting suiting. It’s not just Banana Republic.
Photo: Quantrell Colbert/Quantrell Colbert/The CW
This is Fallon at the club wearing an Alexandre Vauthier one-shoulder dress. I’m a fan of Alexandre Vauthier and all the great ‘80s pieces he’s been d...
This is Fallon at the club wearing an Alexandre Vauthier one-shoulder dress. I’m a fan of Alexandre Vauthier and all the great ‘80s pieces he’s been doing. This one pushes the envelope a little bit and has such a nice ‘80s feel, so we decided to do that Robert Palmer music video look with the hair slicked back and the red lips and the gold earrings. And again, Culhane is in a more casual, off-duty look.
Photo: Bob Mahoney/Bob Mahoney/The CW
You get a little taste of Jeff Colby [Sam Adegoke], who has a strong fashion sense. This is his casual pool look: a Paul Smith shirt and some Gucci sl...
You get a little taste of Jeff Colby [Sam Adegoke], who has a strong fashion sense. This is his casual pool look: a Paul Smith shirt and some Gucci slippers. As Fallon, Liz tried on all these fab bathing suits, and she looked amazing, but I also had this gold caftan we’ve been sitting on, and she was like, Let’s do that, it’s so camp and so funny! We kind of had to fight for it. I think the CW is used to their chicks not wearing a lot. But people have been really trusting with us and they let us go for it, so she’s wearing a caftan and a gold leopard turban by Gucci.
Photo: Mark Hill/Mark Hill/The CW
This was a travel look for Cristal. She and Blake are going out to the countryside. Here’s a perfect example of doing the tonal look — finding element...
This was a travel look for Cristal. She and Blake are going out to the countryside. Here’s a perfect example of doing the tonal look — finding elements that are all the same color. Again, the hat is by Gladys Tamez, and it’s this beautiful blush color. She has a little neck scarf by Madewell. Her sweater is Ryan Roche, and her pants are Alice + Olivia, and her boots are Valentino. I really love this look; it’s kind of the epitome of Cristal. Beautiful, luxurious cashmere sweater, a softer, more blush/neutral palette, and just the epitome of class and taste.
Photo: Mark Hill/Mark Hill/The CW
We called this our "Elle Woods Goes to City Hall" look because in the script, Fallon goes to City Hall and stands out among everyone. There’...
We called this our "Elle Woods Goes to City Hall" look because in the script, Fallon goes to City Hall and stands out among everyone. There’s a store here in Atlanta called Tootsie’s — they’re a chain in the south. They have this amazing Moschino two-piece suit. It was a little bit of Barbie, a little bit of Elle Woods, so it really felt perfect for the scene.
Photo: Mark Hill/Mark Hill/The CW
That’s Cristal’s white Cushnie et Ochs jumpsuit with a choker by Dannijo. I love this photo for that moment of full-on power dressing. Also it’s sexy....
That’s Cristal’s white Cushnie et Ochs jumpsuit with a choker by Dannijo. I love this photo for that moment of full-on power dressing. Also it’s sexy. Cristal is a very sexual woman, and I think she’s unafraid to bring that into the workplace. That’s something I’d like to see more of: You can do the power suit and rock that, but you can also be feminine or sexy or whatever you want, and it’s okay.
Photo: Erika Doss/Erika Doss/The CW
This matched set is a direct pick-up from the looks that Nolan Miller was doing on the original. I just love that it's something that was really popul...
This matched set is a direct pick-up from the looks that Nolan Miller was doing on the original. I just love that it's something that was really popular in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s and is now totally having a comeback.
Photo: Quantrell Colbert/Quantrell Colbert/The CW
On the show, there’s an ‘80s-themed gala for the Carrington Foundation. We didn't want it to be too over-the-top costumey; we just wanted it to be sha...
On the show, there’s an ‘80s-themed gala for the Carrington Foundation. We didn't want it to be too over-the-top costumey; we just wanted it to be sharp and elegant and bring in some of the nods to the original where we could. I think our diehard fans will notice that Fallon’s dress, which I designed, has a great sleeve that’s very reminiscent of an Alexis Carrington sleeve from the original. Cristal’s dress is contemporary, straight off the rack, and that’s from Juan Carlos Obando. I got it at Barney’s. It has this crazy plunging neckline and feels like it could be from the ‘80s because of the sequins but also has a fresh, contemporary cut to it.
Photo: Bob Mahoney/Bob Mahoney/The CW
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