Va-va-voom gowns, vertiginous heels and a ‘pigeon’ bag - the show’s costume designers reveal all.
For diehard Sex and the City fans, the eagerly anticipated reboot And Just Like That . . . returning for a second series was exciting enough. But when news emerged that Kim Cattrall was set to make a cameo, reprising her much-loved role as Samantha Jones for one “cliffhanger” scene, the fandom went into overdrive. For the costume designers, Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago, the fans’ enthusiasm is one of the most pleasing elements of working on AJLT. That and the boundless wardrobe possibilities. “The fanbase is amazing,” Santiago says, speaking on Zoom from Miami. “They get so excited when they see certain familiar clothes and accessories on screen because they have such a connection to the show. Sometimes we sneak things in [to the sequels] for that reason.” Rogers agrees: “To work on something with a legacy like this is amazing, and so unique.”
Judging by all the leaked internet footage, series two is set to be an equally camp odyssey of cosmopolitans, cameos (Samantha! Candice Bergen as Enid Frick!), bad dates and good shoes — the footwear being of particular interest to those fans who monitor the clothes and accessories featured in AJLT as diligently as they did with SATC. Only now they have social media to abet them, with accounts like @everyoutfitonsatc carefully documenting each look. Such as the 15-year-old belt first worn by Carrie in the 2008 film, which came out of hibernation in AJLT, episode three — one of many pieces that lit up the internet when eagle-eyed fans recognised its provenance. “I don’t know what other television show has access to a belt that’s 15 years old and that fans still want to see,” Rogers says with a smile.
Rogers has worked on SATC since day one, initially under the legendary stylist Patricia Field (currently costume designer for Emily in Paris), while Santiago joined in 2007, during the filming of the first SATC film. “Pat really defined the DNA of the original show, and we incorporate that into our process,” Rogers says. “She’s like our mother.”
Hard as it is to believe now, with designers falling over themselves to be featured, when SATC was first screened in 1998, Field and her team had trouble convincing some labels to lend their clothes for use in the show. Rogers remembers that it took until series three for the fashion industry to catch on to its popularity and selling power. Has anyone ever refused to lend? “The only time I ever experienced a ‘no’ was when I worked with Pat on The Devil Wears Prada [Field also costumed the 2006 film]. People were unsure what it was going to be like.”
Carrie may now be in her 50s, but Rogers and Santiago don’t see that as a reason for her style to change. “She is a free-spirited dresser who has always had her own identity,” Santiago says. “She didn’t really follow trends, she made them.” Carrie was never going to hit 50 and start wearing linen — perish the thought. Instead, like all the show’s best characters, she’s a perfect exemplar of “ageless style”.
“There are certain things Carrie will always be drawn to, but she’ll wear them in a different way than she did 20 years ago,” Santiago explains. “She’ll still have her favourite shoes that she’ll pull out and wear. She might not go out in a tube top and hotpants, or dress like she’s going to a club all the time, because she has a different life. But she’ll still have that sexiness to her.”
Charlotte’s style is similarly true to its original incarnation — a profusion of preppiness that befits her residency on New York’s Upper East Side. “Does Charlotte ever wear anything without a belt?” one viewer carped on Instagram upon seeing a poster for AJLT series two. “We stick to that because she has got that perfect hourglass body and wears those types of silhouettes so well,” Santiago says. “We have so much fun dressing her. I love to see her in classic New York designers like Carolina Herrera, Ralph Lauren and Oscar de la Renta.”
Of the main characters, they agree that Miranda’s style has evolved the most. “She’s not a lawyer working in a corporate office any more — she works from home more,” Santiago says. “So she has toned down some of her tailoredness and become more casual. But there will always be certain colours that we love to dress her in — emerald green, cobalt — because of her red hair.”
Unburdened by fans’ expectations, the new characters are particularly fun to dress. One such is Lisa Todd Wexley, played by Nicole Ari Parker, who we already know has one fabulous dress up her sleeve, thanks to taster images showing her in a red, floor-length Maison Valentino gown. “One of the first things MPK [Michael Patrick King, the show’s creator] said about her character is that she’s on the International Best Dressed List,” Santiago says. “That sparked a real discussion. We could have gone down the route of having her in head-to-toe Chanel — very classic — but we decided she’s a bold character who can wear colour, loves making a statement with jewellery, looks great in heels, and has these beautiful shoulders.”
They’re equally enthused about Seema Patel, the glamorous real estate agent played by Sarita Choudhury. “Ooh, Danny and I are going to fight over who gets to talk about Seema,” Rogers laughs. “Her muse is Bianca Jagger, and she always looks luscious.” Santiago adds: “She’s this powerhouse real estate person who we wanted to make very monotone in colour. "
Fans have pointed out that of all the new characters Seema is the closest in spirit to Samantha Jones, whose absence from series one of the reboot was felt keenly (after declining to be part of a third SATC film and falling out with Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall wasn’t asked to be part of AJLT, making her cameo in series two all the more surprising). Did they miss dressing Sam? “I feel there are so many hot and slinky Samantha types that come in and out of the show that will always remind us of Samantha,” Rogers replies diplomatically. “People have grown in the show and moved on. That’s what happens in life. If you don’t change and adapt, you’re left behind.”
One character who hasn’t been left behind is Aidan (John Corbett) — he is set to resurface in series two. “I’ll say this about him: he’s certainly stayed in shape,” Rogers says about dressing Corbett. “He’s tall and he’s lanky, and clothes just look nice on him. They fall nice. As a character Aidan is very secure and relaxed. He likes a good-quality Henley but doesn’t care about the label. As long as it’s made well, he’s happy as a clam.”
Fashion lover that she is, it’s a given that Sarah Jessica Parker is extremely involved in the styling process — “With her history and knowledge of fashion she’s a very close collaborator, for sure,” Rogers confirms — but it’s nice to learn that all the other cast members are equally invested. Not that this makes the editing process any quicker. “Once we know the episodes we’re preparing we do fittings working off the scripts. We’ll have six to eight rolling racks full of clothes. When the actor comes in we go through it, talk about the script and pull out some of our favourite things. Then we start trying things on and playing with the clothes. We have a table full of belts, another of jewellery. All the actors are very collaborative.”
The biggest challenge for the wardrobe department isn’t choosing looks but keeping their choices under wraps. As soon as filming starts, hordes of fans follow the cast around New York, posting photos for the world to see — and judge. Rogers says it comes with the territory. “The internet was not really around originally, you were under the radar. No one saw any clothes until the show aired. Now it’s a real battle. There are so many spoilers. You want to keep things as a surprise for the audience, but they have so much access to it. You definitely feel the eyes of judgment.”
While the styling in AJLT has been praised, inevitably it has also had its detractors. Everyone’s a fashion critic these days, and social media has no shortage of voices complaining that Carrie is overstyled (hello? That’s basically the point) or that Miranda is wearing a dress that doesn’t suit her. “There’s no reason to waste any energy on that,” Santiago says of the negativity.
Sustainability wasn’t front of mind when SATC aired between 1998 and 2004, but it’s something Rogers and Santiago take seriously on AJLT. Carrie in particular dresses in a way that feels right for now, mixing well-loved favourites with newer pieces such as J.W. Anderson’s “pigeon” bag. As well as repurposing and remodelling existing garments, they source vintage looks “from everywhere”, according to Santiago. “We buy from Etsy and eBay, plus certain collectors that we work with all over the world. We leave no stone unturned because you never know what you’re going to find — in a thrift store, at a vintage show, flea market or online. We’re always looking.”
Rogers namechecks London as being “a huge resource for vintage but also for contemporary design. Since the beginning we’ve had a relationship with Vivienne Westwood. We love Molly Goddard. And we’ve been trying to get Richard Quinn on our show too. We adore him. We’ve tried numerous times to get some kind of look, but we haven’t had a [suitable] scene yet. We’re begging for a scene that warrants a look from that show he did with the latex on everybody’s faces. We loved that so much. But what are we going to do — have Nicole Ari Parker go and get a coffee in it?”
Sounds perfectly plausible to me. Whatever we can expect from series two, one thing is for sure: there won’t be any quiet luxury. “I’ve noticed the term being used a lot and think it’s a cool marketing moniker,” Rogers says. “It makes sense for Succession, a show where they all wear clothes that are luxurious but under the radar.”
Please promise us that boring beige swag will never have any place in Carrie’s wardrobe, I plead. “I don’t think on our show anyone wants to see a sedately dressed wealthy person,” Rogers laughs. And just like that, quiet luxury’s reign is over.
And Just Like That is available to stream on Neon and SkyGo.
Written by: Laura Craik
© The Times of London