If any three words in the English language could be guaranteed to inspire and intimidate any costume designer, “Met Gala fabulous” sounds like a safe bet. But when confronted with that phrase in the script for Girls5Eva Season 2, costume designer Matthew Hemesath more than rose to the challenge.
Fans who have devoured the first three episodes of the season, which premiered last week, have already seen the gold-leafed music video those words described. But the story behind the wild scene, and specifically the execution of one outfit, crystallizes the commitment to absurdity that makes Girls5Eva such a joy to watch.
In episode 3, the Girls reunite with rapper Lil Stinker for a music video coated in enough gold to make even Cleopatra raise an eyebrow. (Picture something between Roman Empire grandeur and King Midas’ estate sale.) The costumes are a blinding array of beaded and sequined gowns, which the costume department embellished with various spikes, chains, and other accoutrements. Paula Pell’s Gloria wears a custom jumpsuit, and multiple women sport custom headdresses.
But because Renée Elise Goldsberry’s indefatigable diva, Wickie, always has to be the show-stopper—especially when it comes to fashion—her outfit was the biggest hurdle. In fact, the final product almost never made it to screen because Hemesath worried the heavy outfit made from gold chains would be too cumbersome; a back-up costume was waiting in the wings on the morning of the shoot. That day, however, Goldsberry called him early to say, “Let’s do it.”
Hemesath’s reply: “Really? Sound is gonna kill us.” Even the most frustrated sound mixer must agree, however, that the end result is worth it.
Contemporary comedies like Girls5Eva can be easy to overlook when it’s time to hand out awards for production categories like costuming. But this show’s diabolical sartorial genius simply must not go overlooked. The coats are straight out of the Ocean’s 8 playbook, the power clashes are popping, and Wickie’s wardrobe is a Mary Poppins bag full of ensembles that strut the line between Best and Worst Dressed.
There’s also the sheer volume of costumes this series demands. Hemesath told The Daily Beast that this season required 270 costume changes for the four principal characters alone. Then add in another 189 changes for other characters, and another couple hundred for the background players.
Part of the show’s brilliance, Hemesath says, is the density of the script. “But it also moves so fast that it means there’s a lot of clothes in it!”
In other words, this is a costume department that knows how to move fast and—to quote one of this season’s best songs—bring the “Big Pussy Energy.”
The real fun for Hemesath, however, is watching the show’s stars freak out during their costume reveals. “One of my favorite things is when the ladies have a big group look and they come out of their dressing rooms and they see each other,” he said. “It really shows how much they enjoy each other because they just scream looking at each other.”
Hemesath took over costuming for Girls5Eva this season from original costume designer Tina Nigro, whom he describes as a friend. While other productions have brought him on to tweak things during a sophomore season, in this case, things were already on track. “It was, what can I do to put my own spin on it, and how can these characters grow with the season?”
Sharp-eyed viewers might notice brighter colors and even louder patterns this year. Hemesath tailors his Instagram feed to each new production he joins, and in this case, that meant following a lot of pop stars, fashion brands, and, as one might guess from looking at Busy Philipps’ character, Real Housewives. As the women of Girls5Eva find their footing again as a band and get back in touch with their younger selves, their wardrobes are getting bolder—and, in some cases, sexier.
Some of the shifts are subtle. One can sum up Sara Bareilles’ Dawn, the mom of the group, and her changing look with the words “fewer sweaters.” Pell’s Gloria, Hemesath notes, is “shedding the dentist” and “releasing her inner rock star” with wilder wardrobe and hair choices. (Pell, he adds, made it known early on that she’s game for pretty much anything where costumes are concerned.) Philipps, meanwhile, is a little more Real Housewife than Barbie doll this season and has embraced the color lavender.
But there’s no one quite like Goldsberry’s ridiculous Wickie and her addiction to all forms of excess. This season, she vows to “live like every other hot person in Rome—dressing like a billionaire, sleeping in a hovel.” That line, Hemesath said, basically describes the character’s fashion philosophy this season. “She’s always walking the line between fashionista and fashion victim.”
Only one person this season manages to best Wickie in the outlandish outfit game—a mysterious celebrity whose face we cannot see, who hides behind what one character dubs a “sexy beekeeper” jumpsuit (seen in Hemesath’s sketch above). After purchasing an actual beekeeper suit to see what kind of lewk he’d be working with, Hemesath surprisingly found himself saying, “This is actually right—we just need to make it out of cooler fabric.”
Throw in some experimentation with translucent fabrics and a Pharrell hat-like helmet shape and you’ve got what just might be TV’s wildest look thus far in 2022. Like many who do this work, however, Hemesath refuses to take all the credit, instead praising the huge team that pulled it all together—his assistant, the shoppers, the tailors, and set crew. “I may get all the credit,” he says, “but a lot of the time, I feel like I’m a conductor of an orchestra with really talented musicians.”