When today’s fashion designers reinterpret legendary costumes from Hollywood’s past, they breathe new life into cinematic history. This collection pairs iconic outfits from eight films—Barry Lyndon, Marie Antoinette, Dune, Black Panther, Orlando, Edward Scissorhands, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, and The Great Gatsby—with seven custom creations inspired by their real or imagined worlds.

Marie Antoinette (2006)
Italian costume designer Milena Canonero, a four-time Oscar winner with nine nominations, excels at bringing imaginary worlds to life. While working on Miami Vice in 1986, Vogue observed that Canonero’s costumes go beyond striking visuals to tell a fashion story. Though her research is thorough, she doesn’t approach it like a documentarian. “I get inspiration from many sources, mainly artwork and photographs from different periods,” she shared in a recent interview, “but it’s more about attitudes.” For Vogue World: Hollywood, Louis Vuitton’s Nicolas Ghesquière captures the lush rococo elegance of the 18th century, a style Canonero first explored in Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon and later in Sofia Coppola’s delightful Marie Antoinette. This collaboration confirms the designer’s earlier remark to Vogue: “Period movies have more style.”

Dune (2021)
Model Gigi Hadid wears a stillsuit designed by Jacqueline West for Zendaya’s character Chani, a graceful yet formidable presence in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune films. When Villeneuve first approached West about the costumes, her immediate reaction was, “But I don’t do sci-fi!” That was exactly why he wanted her. “He said, ‘I want it to be grounded in the past even though it’s the future,'” West explains. “I think he chose me because he liked my work in The Revenant, which is rooted in realism.” Drawing on her art history background, West looked to medieval influences and ancient art from North Africa and the Middle East for many of Dune’s costumes. For the Fremen uniforms, she followed Frank Herbert’s detailed descriptions from the book. “We needed collection areas for bodily fluids, a tubing system for water, a design that functioned like a desert distillery, and armor elements since the Fremen are skilled fighters.” West refines her designs with a sketch artist and presents them to the director, continuing until she hears Villeneuve say, “I deeply love it.”

A finely crafted Alaïa top and skirt echo the long, dark robes of Dune’s powerful Bene Gesserit.

Black Panther (2018)
“Costume designing is about world building,” says Ruth E. Carter, who won Oscars for both Black Panther and its sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. But it also involves perfecting every detail of each outfit. Carter recalls the moment Chadwick Boseman first tried on his Black Panther suit: “It was majestic. It had that power you feel when you see a superhero. I just jumped up and down—the Black Panther was in my office!” Still, adjustments were needed to improve Boseman’s mobility and breathing. “We brought in someone from the Boston Ballet to add gussets under the arms and legs, and we designed a special nose piece that he could remove, which VFX would later restore.” Carter applied the same expertise to the outfits of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda’s all-female royal guard. Here, Awar Odhiang models one of those ensembles alongside an interpretation by Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing for Vogue World: Hollywood.Sandy Powell, an award-winning costume designer with three Oscars and three BAFTAs (and three times as many nominations), reflects on her work on the 1992 film Orlando. “I’ve done many films, but very few gave me the artistic freedom I had on Orlando,” she says. Directed by Sally Potter and starring Tilda Swinton, the film was a period piece with a stylized edge, not strictly historically accurate. Powell, who had previously collaborated with both the director and the actor on other projects, saw their reunion as a natural step. Swinton was central to the costume design process. “I can’t design without knowing who’s wearing the clothes—that’s the most important thing,” Powell explains. “It’s not just about their physique or coloring; it’s about how they carry themselves and express their personality. Their input matters because we’re building a character, not just dressing someone up for a night out. It’s about making the actor believe in the role.”

Colleen Atwood, a four-time Oscar-winning costume designer, recalls creating Johnny Depp’s iconic look for Tim Burton’s 1990 film Edward Scissorhands. “Edward was born from the streets, inspired by the jobbers on Canal and Orchard Streets selling all sorts of items,” she says. “We envisioned him as a patched-together individual, with a costume blending bondage elements, practicality, and a touch of Victorian style.” Atwood notes that Burton’s imaginative sketches were her starting point, as he often draws characters from his long-held visions. She has recreated the Edward Scissorhands costume for Vogue World: Hollywood, modeled by Anok Yai, whom she praises as “a heavenly creature.” Yai also wears an Edward-inspired outfit by Sean McGirr of McQueen.

Arianne Phillips, known for costuming real-life figures in films, discusses her work on Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, where she dressed Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate. “I felt a responsibility to portray Sharon authentically,” Phillips tells Vogue. “She wasn’t just a talented actress; she was an It girl.” The faux-python coat Robbie wears to the Playboy Mansion in the film is based on the actual Ossie Clark coat Tate wore to the 1968 London premiere of Rosemary’s Baby. Phillips, a collector of Clark’s designs, notes that Tate and Roman Polanski lived in London during the Carnaby Street era, a time of fashion and rock ‘n’ roll fusion that aligns with the film’s setting. Quentin Tarantino has lent the coat to Vogue World: Hollywood, where a faithful reproduction by Marc Jacobs will also be featured.

Catherine Martin, an Australian costume designer, is the second woman to win multiple Oscars in one year (after Edith Head) and the first to achieve this twice—for Moulin Rouge! and The Great Gatsby, both directed by her husband, Baz Luhrmann. “Baz wanted the Gatsby costumes to be grounded in 1920s silhouettes, fabrics, and details but infused with a modern energy to connect with today’s audience,” she explains.Martin explains, “He told me, ‘I don’t want a nostalgic New York; I don’t want a sepia-toned New York. I want a New York that feels as vibrant, sexy, raw, and modern as it would have to Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald or any of the characters in the book.’ I became captivated by the idealized silhouettes in these drawings, which were often slimmer and more stylized than real life,” she adds. “This inspired me to prioritize these idealized forms over strict historical accuracy.” Her most cherished memories of working on Gatsby involve “collaborating with Miuccia Prada to reinterpret 1920s style for today’s audience in the party scenes.” For Vogue World: Hollywood, Mrs. Prada has crafted a fresh take on Daisy, as showcased by the Miu Miu dress here.

—Irene Kim

In this story: hair by Jimmy Paul; makeup by Kabuki; manicurist Yuko Tsuchihashi; tailor Hailey Desjardins. Produced by Tann Services. Set Design: Julia Wagner.

Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about Hollywoods iconic characters being reimagined by leading fashion designers designed to be clear helpful and easy to understand

General Beginner Questions

1 What does Hollywoods iconic characters reimagined by fashion designers even mean
Its a creative project where top fashion designers take famous movie characters and redesign their signature looks with their own unique highfashion style

2 Can you give me a famous example
A classic example is when designer Jean Paul Gaultier created the iconic costumes for the Fifth Element especially Milla Jovovichs bandage outfit More recently designers like Virgil Abloh and Maria Grazia Chiuri have reimagined characters for editorial photoshoots

3 Why would a fashion designer do this
Its a way for designers to showcase their artistry pay homage to pop culture and generate buzz It blends the storytelling of film with the creativity of high fashion appealing to fans of both

4 Where can I see these reimagined designs
They are often featured in highfashion magazines like Vogue or Harpers Bazaar in museum exhibitions or as part of a designers runway show or advertising campaign

5 Are these new costumes actually used in movies
Rarely These are usually conceptual or artistic projects not made for new film productions They are created for photoshoots art and publicity

Deeper Advanced Questions

6 Whats the benefit for the fashion brand in doing this
It connects the brand to a beloved characters legacy reaching a massive new audience It positions the designer as a cultural tastemaker and generates immense media coverage and social media engagement

7 Dont these redesigns sometimes ruin the original characters image
It can be controversial Purists might feel a redesign strays too far from what makes the character special However the goal isnt to replace the original but to offer a fresh artistic perspective that sparks conversation

8 How do designers decide which characters to reimagine
They often choose characters with a strong recognizable visual identity The best choices have a uniform that is instantly known eg Marilyn Monroe