Cruella costume designer Jenny Beavan reveals Mad Max: Fury Road was her biggest challenge. Cruella is Disney's newest take on a villain origin story following the success of its Maleficent franchise. Emma Stone takes on the title role, starring alongside Emma Thompson's Baroness von Hellman. The images and footage from the film have teased a slightly darker Disney tale, with Cruella receiving a PG-13 rating. Though it was originally set for a traditional theatrical release in December 2020, it will now debut simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+ as part of the streamer's Premier Access tier.
Considering fashion is a huge part of Cruella's story, it seems like it would be an exciting movie to work on from a costume design perspective. However, it's only one of a slew of exciting projects Beavan has been a part of. She won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design thanks to her work on 1986's A Room With A View. Beavan has been a major figure in the industry since the late '70s, contributing to beloved movies like Sense and Sensibility, Sherlock Holmes, and of course, Mad Max: Fury Road.
Per ComicBook, Beavan discussed her work at a press conference for Cruella. She explained the upcoming Disney movie wasn't her "biggest challenge" and explained why that honor goes to Mad Max: Fury Road.
I don't think it was my biggest challenge. I would say Mad Max was because that was so out of my comfort zone, but it also opened up a virtually a whole new career for me because having done a huge amount of lovely but, you know, period dramas of particularly English sort of Victorian ages regency, I think people were slightly surprised that I could tackle the post-apocalyptic world in a rather disgusting way. That was brilliant. But that was probably the biggest challenge. Because as I said, I couldn't have been more out of my comfort zone. [Cruella] was more in my comfort zone, because I remember the '70s, and the story is very clear. There's a lot of things to hang on to with Cruella. Our-our problem was time ... I had an amazing crew, amazing team. And somehow we did do it. So, bless them.
Beavan's explanation for why Mad Max: Fury Road was a tough nut to crack makes a lot of sense. The movie has an incredibly specific look, unlike anything seen outside of the franchise. Additionally, prior to Fury Road, the most recent Mad Max movie came out in 1985, making it harder to use that as inspiration today. However, even if it was Beavan's biggest career challenge, it's clear her work on the film was a success; she nabbed her second Oscar for it.
With many already talking about the exquisite costumes in Cruella, it's not out of the realm of possibility Beavan could walk away with gold again. So far, audiences have only received a taste of the fashion they can expect to see in the movie, but even that, especially Cruella's fiery transformation, has them eager for more once the film releases. The Academy tends to reward costume designers on fashion-focused movies, with Patricia Field, for example, earning a nomination for her work on The Devil Wears Prada. It may depend on the general reception to Cruella, but it's possible the film could become another career high for Beavan.
Source: ComicBook
