‘Succession’ costume designer Michelle Matland on Kendall’s bomber jacket, Kerry’s ATN audition look and more [Exclusive Video Interview]
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Costume designer Michelle Matland didn’t necessarily “pre-grieve” the end of “Succession” like Roman Roy (Kieran Culkin) attempted to do with the death of his father, but she’s already feeling wistful about the show’s conclusion.
“I think the number one thing that I will miss – it makes me sad because I don’t know if I’ll have it again – is the collaboration,” Matland tells Gold Derby in an exclusive video interview conducted just days before the show’s series finale aired. “The idea that you have a voice, you have a brain, and these incredible talents all came together and listened, heard, thought, projected, gave information and took ideas and enjoyed the company of people who are interested in storytelling on so many levels. I know that’s the thing I’m going to miss. I missed it already.”
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Matland, a two-time Emmy Award nominee for “Angels In America” and “Mildred Pierce,” has worked on every episode of “Succession” since the pilot episode. Over the show’s four seasons, she worked with the acclaimed cast and crew to create numerous memorable looks, including a “Top Gun”-inspired bomber jacket worn by Kendal Roy actor Jeremy Strong in the Season 4 episode, “Living+.”
“[Creator] Jesse [Armstrong], and the directors and the writers are all involved in every choice that we make. So my department is just one facet of this big puzzle that we try to create for the episodes,” she explains. “The bomber jacket… Jeremy had one idea, someone else had another idea and we kind of took them all together and this Tom Cruise moment happened. But it is a participatory and investigative journey for all of us. Because the storylines take these characters on so many different journeys. We never quite know where we’re going to land.”
In terms of Kendall’s jacket, Matland says there was a “very long discussion” about where the various patches would be placed. But the goal was to mirror Pete “Maverick” Mitchell’s look from “Top Gun” and its sequel.
“We were very, very careful about that – and everybody, of course, has an opinion. We can discuss it for 10 to 20 hours, but we don’t have that kind of influence or time,” she says. “Everyone has to kind of bow to the final word, which is often the creator, Jesse. He is the last man standing along with someone like Jeremy, who’s very profoundly involved in all of the aspects of his performance.”
SEEJeremy Strong on Kendall’s ‘completely tragic’ ‘Succession ending: ‘I was gutted by it’
“Succession” routinely dominated social media chatter on Sunday nights throughout its final season, with fans sharing memes and screenshots of the show’s best moments. An early season favorite was Kerry’s (Zoe Winters) ATN audition – a calamity that knocked Logan’s (Brian Cox) assistant and new girlfriend down numerous pegs in the eyes of her boss.
“That was a great moment because for her to have that transformation to try to get this gig – that it’s the one opportunity Logan has to offer her. It was so funny to do,” Matland says. For Kerry’s look – the character wears a bright pink dress instead of her usual darker clothes – Matland looked real-life news anchors.
“When you look at these newscasters and they are talking about sometimes very tragic tales, but they’re in yellow and red and pink and turquoise and they’re wearing high heels and they have their jewelry on – it’s so absurd,” Matland says. “I still don’t get it. It’s like everybody wants to be a weatherman, you know? So yes, we did a little research on that. And it just seemed so true – inappropriately appropriate.”
Season 4 of “Succession” had its challenges, too – including how the show would handle Sarah Snook’s pregnancy. Matland says at the start of production, Snook wasn’t aware she was pregnant. But once it became clear, Armstrong discussed with Matland and her team “whether we should try and cover it, or incorporate the storyline.”
“[Armstrong’s] all about truth-telling. Jesse takes from his actors so many wonderful tidbits and turns them into script. He’s so aware of all of the delicacy of humanity. He just brings so much life to it,” she says. “So we had to decide whether to incorporate the pregnancy in the story or avoid it. And it just seemed more authentic to dive right in.”
Matland says Snook was “such a team player” throughout. “Obviously it’s not easy to keep those hours and go through the initial early months [of pregnancy]. But she was just such a trouper,” she says. “We just tried to continue telling Shiv’s story.”
All episodes of “Succession,” including the series finale, are streaming on Max.
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