Movie costumes are an essential element of filmmaking, as they help to create a character's visual identity and enhance the overall story's mood and tone. Costume designers work closely with directors, writers, and actors to ensure that every costume choice fits seamlessly into the film's narrative.
Creating movie costumes involves a great deal of research, design, and construction. Costumes must not only look visually appealing but also be durable enough to withstand the rigors of filming. In some cases, special effects and CGI may be used to enhance or alter the appearance of costumes on-screen. However, actors must spend many hours in the dressing room to get their characters to look their best. They have to wear heavy costumes or prosthetics to transform into things that don't look like themselves, some even suffer physical after-effects at the end of filming.
#1 Angelina Jolie — Maleficent
Source: © Maleficent / Jolie Pas and co-producers, © disneymaleficent / Instagram
It took the team of makeup artists 2.5 hours to transform Jolie into Maleficent. For a scary and alien appearance, the actress used prosthetics on her nose, cheekbones, and ears. She also had special fangs and contact lenses. But she found that the horns were the hardest portion to handle. Jolie said in an interview that because they were somewhat hefty, her neck rapidly grew fatigued. In addition, she wore 5-inch heels and constantly hit herself with the horns on stage. She even nearly knocked herself out a number of times.
#2 Ralph Fiennes — Harry Potter saga
Source: © Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II / Warner Bros. and co-producers
The Dark Lord is perhaps one of the most unforgettable roles of Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes not only because of his popularity but also because of the costumes to transform into the character. He frequently tripped over his costume and had to wear pantyhose underneath the cloak. However, these were pulled down so low that the lower part was at knee level. According to the actor, he couldn't walk as gracefully as Voldemort. When Fiennes could no longer take it, he requested the costume designer to fix it and they cut off the pantyhose's top and added garters on each leg as if they were stockings.
#3 Brie Larson — Captain Marvel
Source: © Captain Marvel / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers
During filming for Captain Marvel, Brie Larson needed 2 assistants to put her costume on each time. And when she goes to the bathroom, a team of 5 people had to join Brie there too.
#4 Tilda Swinton — The Grand Budapest Hotel
Source: © The Grand Budapest Hotel / Fox Searchlight Pictures and co-producers
Tilda Swinton spent five hours waiting patiently for the makeup artists to complete turning her into an elderly woman: “It was very interesting to watch these guys work. A whole team was taking care of me. They would take a piece of something that looked like bacon and apply it to my face, hands, and ears.” After that, she also waited for hours to remove her makeup. Luckily, Tilda had spent only two days on the film set.
#5 Saoirse Ronan — Mary, Queen of Scotts
Source: © Mary Queen of Scots / Focus Features and co-producers
For her title role in “Mary, Queen of Scots”, Saoirse Ronan wore a corset for 12 hours a day. After the movie, it took her a month to remove her hourglass figure. In addition, the actress said that the corset was very uncomfortable and put pressure on her organs.
#6 Orlando Bloom — Lord of the Rings saga
Source: © The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers / New Line Cinema and co-producers
Bloom had to wear blue contact lenses to transform into Legolas in the "Lord of the Rings" saga. He hated them because they irritated his mucous membranes and constantly fell out. So when he returned to play Legolas in the "The Hobbit" trilogy, he refused to wear them and the filmmaker painted his eyes in CGI.
#7 Shawn and Marlon Wayans — White Chicks
Source: © White Chicks / Revolution Studios and co-producers, © White Chicks / Revolution Studios and co-producers
Both the makeup team and the actors found it challenging to make the transition from brothers to sisters. The artists tried to cut the procedure from 7 hours per day to 5 hours: “We did it for 60 days. It was exhausting. The makeup had to be fixed immediately if they ate or drank something. The guys hardly slept during the breaks between makeup application and shooting.”
#8 Helena Bonham Carter — Planet of the Apes
Source: © Planet of the Apes / Twentieth Century Fox and co-producers
When filming "Planet of the Apes", Helena Bonham Carter had to wake up at 2 or 3 a.m. since the makeup took roughly four hours. “It’s hard to put up with it, and by the end of the shoot, your nerves are completely worn out,” the star said. Additionally, it was so hard to eat or drink in the monkey suit. So, the actress had to use a mirror to know where her mouth was. Due to the huge monkey ears prosthesis, sometimes she couldn’t hear her colleagues.
#9 Gwyneth Paltrow — Shallow Hal
Source: © Shallow Hal / Twentieth Century Fox and co-producers, © Ken Hively/ Los Angeles Times / Getty Images, © Shallow Hal / Twentieth Century Fox and co-producers
Gwyneth Paltrow had to face emotional trauma because of her character attire. The actress has experienced what overweight people feel and she didn't like it. “The first day I tried on the costume, I was at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, and I walked across the lobby. I felt so sad and anxious. No one looked me in the eye because I looked like a person suffering from obesity. I felt humiliated because people looked down on me.”
#10 Gary Oldman — Darkest Hour
Source: © Darkest Hour / Focus Features and co-producers, © Darkest Hour / Twitter
It took about 4 hours for Oldman to transform into the British prime minister. In addition to the complicated make-up sessions, Gary also had a special patch applied to his body, which he wore resembling a Victorian corset. He had to maintain that appearance for 18 to 20 hours every day for 48 consecutive days, so he was concerned that he wouldn't be able to handle the demanding schedule. He was also afraid that the amount of glue would be too much for his skin.
#11 Michael Sheen — Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1
Source: © The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2 / Summit Entertainment and co-producers
Although this isn't the first time Michael Sheen has had to wear uncomfortable clothes, he finds the vampire transformation process to be a nightmare, especially the vampire's contact lenses. His eyes were covered which make them much larger than usual. The assistants would lift Michael’s upper eyelid and partially insert the lens. Then they did the same with the lower eyelid. After that, they would move it to adjust it. The process was like torture. The actor suffered from severe headaches and had to use eye drops all the time since lenses basically nullified his peripheral vision.
#12 Rachel Brosnahan — The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Source: © The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel / Amazon Studios and co-producers
Rachel Brosnahan was required to constantly wear a corset underneath her clothing because the plot took place in the United States in the 1960s. In an interview, she said, “I suffered an injury because of the corset. In the series, we spoke very fast, so I didn’t have enough time to inhale. I wasn’t breathing deeply enough because a couple of my ribs got stuck together. Now I can’t inhale deeply”.
#13 Christina Ricci — Penelope
Source: © Penelope / Summit Entertainment and co-producers
It took an hour and a half to put a prosthetic nose on Christina Ricci’s face. The actress was instructed to keep her mouth closed and push her fake nose firmly on her face during this procedure. Then she did her hair and makeup.