Wardrobe Secrets From Behind The Scenes Of ‘Star Wars’

Princess Leia's hair buns in "ANH" are unique among entertainment history's hairstyles.Leia's hair buns in 'ANH' used 'Southwestern Revolutionaries' styling.Leia's hair buns may be the most instantly recognizable. They rank with Marge's famous updo in The Simpsons.The Simpsons.Leia's buns instantly connect fans globally. George Lucas developed the idea from turn-of-the-century Mexico. Lucas explained this to Time.Time.in 2002:

For the 1977 film, I aimed for something different than fashion. I chose a Southwestern Pancho Villa woman revolutionary look. That is what the buns are; they come from turn-of-the-century Mexico. The style gained traction quickly.

Rogue One.Costume designers Dave Crossman and Glyn Dillon faced a big job designing around 700 costumes for their standalone film. Dillon explained to The Hollywood Reporter, "Just as much work went into our background characters as the primary ones."The Hollywood Reporter."WithStar Wars.For Star Wars films, a background character has a chance to become immortal as a toy, trading card, or comic book subject. Every costume must meet this demand.

Meanwhile, creators of the Black Series toy line worked hard on action figure versions while the film was in production. Steve Evans, Hasbro’s Star Wars design director, worked on this.Star Wars.design director,explained, "We see the movie later, really, than the fans." The team never knows a character's role size from production stills. Constable Zuvio ended up with his own action figure because of this.action figureforThe Force Awakens., even though Lando appeared only briefly in one scene.

For SoloSolocostume designers David Crossman and Glyn Dillon began designing Lando Calrissian's look. They looked to 1970s suave styles for inspiration. "We looked at many rock stars like Hendrix and Marvin Gaye. Glyn had a picture of Marvin Gaye with this leather collar detail, which we used for Lando," said Crossman and Dillon.Crossman said. "The cape element grew because even in the original film, Lando wears a cape. But we are making a young, aspiring Lando who spends his money on clothes and projecting himself."

Dillon added that Lando was "dressing for the job he wants, not the job he has." The pair also included Prince and James Brown in the list of musical icons for Lando's style.

InSolo, David Crossman and Glyn Dillon faced a challenge creating a costume for a younger, beloved character.

"There is the young Han Solo, and then there is an even younger Han Solo," said Dillon.said DillonFor Han Solo’s Corellian costume, we looked at music. We used The Clash, '80s new wave, and punk bands. That era inspired his look.

The pair found the perfect suede jacket for Han at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Dillon explained:

They saw a brown, suede jacket with black panels. They thought, "We could do something like that for Han." They started building that look. They aimed for a cropped, short, clipped fit. Harrison Ford’s sleeves are short; everything is trimmed; there is no excess. They liked that jacket. They tailored it, built up the shoulders, and gave it a heroic shape by slightly squaring his shoulders.

Costume designer Michael Kaplan designed over a thousand costumes forThe Last Jedi.He explained toThe New York TimesHe returned to sources used by earlier film costume designers for inspiration.

"The old movies looked to Japan. Original costume designers studied ninja clothes. They looked at westerns. They looked at WWII and some WWI," Kaplan said. "I used those same sources. I did not want to reinventStar Wars. I wanted to embrace it and update it.

When asked about favorite movie costumes, he cited the Praetorian Guard. Kaplan said he wanted the actors' costumes to have a unique feel and high functionality.

"We looked at 1950s muscle cars. The costumes went on stuntmen fighting hard," Kaplan said. "They use weapons and need full motion range. If these guys fall, the armor must not crack. The helmets look blind, but they have tiny slits. They see perfectly. They are very samurai, very Japanese, but clean."

For outfitting Leia inThe Last Jedi, costume designerMichael Kaplan explainsDirector Rian Johnson wanted the character to look more regal and like a princess. Kaplan went straight to actual royalty for ideas:

Capes work well, especially in the cave and on the battlefield. Pictures of Queen Elizabeth II wearing a military cape inspired me. We made all the jewelry. She wears one ring fromEpisode VII, but the rest of the jewelry is new forEpisode VIII. I wanted her to look as beautiful and regal as possible. The shape and the cloak she wears are veryStar Wars, but very elegant.

Leia wears two similar capes. One is woven metallic fabric; the other is a simple gray-green cape she keeps until the film ends. Rian liked how it framed her face when the camera hit her eyes. Later, a shot shows her looking over the cape, just her eyes visible, the collar spiraling around her head and face. That moment is beautiful.

Padmé enjoys one of the galaxy's best wardrobes. Her Throne Room outfit in The Phantom MenaceThis film shows striking visuals. Costume designer Trisha Biggar went for a "sort of Chinese Imperial feel." This made Padmé look larger and older than the child queen she was.Trisha BiggarThe costume used Chinese imperial feels. This made Padmé appear larger and older than the child queen she actually was.

The costume uses red shades, which marked royalty in China. Gold Korean and Mongolian designs, inspired by wedding dresses, appear too. Along with her stark white makeup, the costume gives the character power and timelessness.

Many fans value Darth Vader's first movie costume. Costume designer John Mollo got only $1,173 to build it before production. Mollo worked with sketch artist Ralph McQuarrie to create a wearable costume including not onlySamuraiinfluences but also elements from WWI trench armor and Third Reich helmets. Surprisingly, Darth Vader's full-head helmet did not appear in the first sketches.

McQuarrie's early sketches show a man like Valorum, tall with a flowing cape. A key feature is the futuristic gas mask over his face. McQuarrie explains this is a personal respirator because Vader crossed space from the Imperial Star Destroyer to the rebel cruiser. "Early in the script, there was a description of Vader crossing between two ships in space, so I created this mask so he could breathe in space," McQuarrie explained.explained"George loved it."

George Lucas offered David Prowse the role of Chewbacca or Vader because of the actor's strong bodybuilder build. Prowse chose Vader, thinking it would be more memorable, unaware his face would be covered by a full mask for his whole performance.chose the role of VaderHe assumed the role would be more memorable. He did not realize his face would be covered with a full mask for the entire performance. The 1977 film costume used a collage of pieces. These pieces included a monk's robe from the Middle Ages andmotorcycle helmets. Pay close attention; some of Darth's Stormtroopers bear names of WWII Germans.

Some viewers ask questions duringThe Last JediRian Johnson directed Admiral Amilyn Hodo to wear a gown for the battle. This choice was beautiful but seemed odd for a military woman. Costume designer Michael Kaplan explained Rian Johnson made that call.toldVogue:

She is an admiral in the military. I thought she needed a uniform, but Rian did not want one. He wanted her look to be elegant and feminine. He wanted him to see Laura’s body. She needed something more form-fitting. I looked at Madame Grès's work from the '30s and '40s. Her gowns drew from classic Greek styles. They planned silver hair. They feared it looked like grey hair. So, Rian chose lavender hair to match the dress.

Main characters in the original trilogy wear clothes symbolizing their allegiance. Bad guys, like Darth Vader, wear all black. Good guys often wear earth tones or white when their purity needs highlighting. Carrie Fisher oncecommented, "I wore a white turtleneck dress in the first film to show my purity." Luke also wears white in most ofA New Hope, symbolizingboth his purity and a suggestion of his sister Leia.

Jedi Masters usually choose earthy tones, giving them an old, natural feel against a high-tech, futuristic world. Luke wears black inReturn of the Jedi, and again inThe Last Jedi- especially during his final fight scene. That film, however, shows his clothes more like a priest's robes than his dad's usual gear.

The tall, supermodel-like Kaminoan characters look like this inAttack of the ClonesThe Kamino design came from a film directed by George Lucas's friend, Steven Spielberg. "The Kamino design was a clear nod to the classic alien of"Close Encounters," Lucasacknowledged.

The characters' large eyes came from the innocent look of a seal.the seal.

Stand-in actors played the Kaminoans in scenes with live actors because the characters were digital. The problem was the stand-ins were too short. To keep the actors' eye lines correct, the stand-ins wore hardhats with cardboard cutouts of the Kaminoans' necks and heads taped on top.

Naming dogs after Chewbacca happens by accident. The character came from George Lucas's dog, Indiana, who later shared his name with Lucas's most famous non-Star Warscharacter, Indiana Jones. Lucas recalledrecalled:

I owned an Alaskan Malamute while writing the film. That sweet dog sat beside me while I wrote. She sat in the front seat when I drove. A Malamute is a huge dog, about one hundred thirty pounds, bigger than a person, and long-haired. Having her with me always inspired me to give Han Solo a sidekick, a big, furry dog. It wasn't exactly a dog, but it was smart.

Han Solo was the original space cowboy in pop culture. His sleek vest, jeans, boots, and low-slung holster came from costume designer John Mollo. Han always looked ready to draw his weapon, like a cowboy with his hand near his six-shooter.

"The sense was that he was cowboy-like," said Mollo's son, Tom.This came out after his father died."He was probably the most Western character."

The cowboy look gave Solo swagger and helped set the mood in certain scenes. "That’s why I think that cantina scene is so amazing," Mollo stated. "It's very saloon-like. My father largely shaped that scene's look."

Inspiration strikes anytime, as shown byEpisode IISolo's costume designer was Trisha Biggar. One day, while eating at a restaurant with her crew, she saw the beauty of the abalone shells.

"They look at these shells and, after lunch, the waiters put them in a doggie bag," says Saul Sopoci Drake, the exhibitions developer behindRebel, Jedi, Princess, Queen: Star Wars and the Power of Costume. "Those shells ended up in Queen Jamilla's crown."