Costume designer Ellen Mirojnick has been a mainstay in Hollywood for decades. She doesn’t particularly focus on period film — she’s known for contemporary films like Fatal Attraction (1987), Wall Street (1987), Basic Instinct (1992), Speed (1994), and Showgirls (1995). Nonetheless, she’s done a decent number of historical and fantasy films, plus received a lot of acclaim recently for her designs for Oppenheimer (2023) — and received an Emmy for Behind the Candelabra (2013) — so I thought it would be interesting to take a look at her career!
French Quarter (1978)
“Two parallel stories set in the red light area of New Orleans, one contemporary and one set at the turn of the century,” per Wikipedia. Which story these images are from, I have no idea, given this era was all about faux-Edwardian and tons of makeup!
Mobsters (1991)
A film about the rise of mobsters Charles “Lucky” Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Frank Costello, and Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel from 1917-31.
“It’s design based on historical research. I selected the fabrics, and chose styles based on what was best for each character. We wanted it to not look like a costume epic, so these characters would feel comfortable in the clothes they wore. They are classically styled clothes, with the only difference being the way the jackets were cut high under the arms and narrow across the chest. The actors weren’t used to that kind of restriction” (Gangster Chic).
Chaplin (1992)
A biopic about actor Charlie Chaplin, starring Robert Downey Jr. Mirojnick was called in as the initial designer’s work wasn’t gelling. She recounts,
“We took the Little Tramp costume and cut it all apart. He stood in the mirror as we redid it. Within 15 minutes, Robert Downey Jr. faded away and Charlie Chaplin emerged. It sent chills up and down all of our spines” (What Do Sharon Stone’s ‘Basic Instinct’ Dress and Oppenheimer’s Suit Have in Common?).
Mulholland Falls (1996)
A noir film set in 1940s Los Angeles, with Nick Nolte, Jennifer Connelly, Melanie Griffith, and John Malkovich, among others.
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas in a fictionalized take on a real-life story about a pair of male lions that terrorized railroad builders in Kenya in 1898.
Cinderella (1997)
Nope, not historical, but I feel like if we’re looking at Mirojnick’s career, we need to include fantasy work as it’s adjacent. This was the TV adaptation of the musical starring Brandy.
“We didn’t have any money to work with, so we had to be really creative.” In order to create the film’s colorful Art Nouveau-inspired looks on a budget, Ms. Mirojnick bought lots of Indian fabric. “It did so much for us, and it didn’t cost a lot of money to be able to create the costumes from it,” she said (What Do Sharon Stone’s ‘Basic Instinct’ Dress and Oppenheimer’s Suit Have in Common?).
Behind the Candelabra (2013)
A TV biopic about pianist Liberace. Mirojnick received an Emmy for her work.
“I had to check myself everyday to make sure it wasn’t jokey or campy or too kitschy and just keep them as real men, in a real love affair. I always knew that there was nothing that I could ever make fun of” (“Behind the Costumes: Ellen Mirojnick on Reinterpreting Liberace.” Telegraph.Co.Uk, Feb 16, 2014).
Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter (2013)
A direct-to-video short film set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and continuing the storyline of Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), who joins the French Resistance and then goes on to serve alongside Captain America.
Gilded Lilys (2013)
An unaired pilot produced by Shonda Rhimes (Bridgerton) that is set in 1895 and revolves around the opening of the first luxury hotel in New York City. It was supposed to be the American Downton Abbey, and no one officially knows why it never went anywhere.
The Knick (2014-15)
A gritty TV series about doctors and staff at New York City’s Knickerbocker Hospital in the early 20th century.
The hospital and its staff would be gray, black and white — “all to reinforce the blood,” said Mirojnick — while the world of the Lower East Side slums would be sepia and ocher and the upper-class areas cooler shades of violet and blue. Paintings by Gustav Klimt and Egon Scheile and images from the medical library at Columbia University and the Lower East Side Tenement Museum provided inspiration (‘The Knick’s’ production design is vintage, but not nostalgic).
Still Star-Crossed (2017)
A TV series “sequel” to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, again produced by Shonda Rhimes.
The Greatest Showman (2017)
A fictionalized musical biopic about showman/entertainer P.T. Barnum, with costumes that have fuck-all to do with the period, as Mirojnick readily admits:
“We decided that it takes place ‘a long time ago.’ The period detail from 1845 to 1870 isn’t 100% accurate. There is no hoop skirt. No corseted tops. Why? Because we suspended disbelief. We made it romantic. We made it classic. And we made it beautiful. And with that, it was very freeing to create a story filled with these wonderful characters that were not limited by a boundary of time” (‘Greatest Showman’ costumes go for a timeless but historic look).
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)
Another fantasy film, but the costumes have historical references and are AMAZE-BALLS. This was the second live-action film about the evil fairy Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty.
“What I really hoped to achieve in terms of the entirety of the dark fey and their costuming was that you not really notice the costuming that much,” said Mirojnick. “Because they’re a species that all have to look organic, and not ‘costume designed.’ “Additionally, they had to consider the dark fey’s wings and their ability to fly with every design. “You would look at something and say, ‘Do you believe that will go up in the air? Will that fly?’ ” (How Angelina Jolie’s daughter inspired the secret backstory of ‘Maleficent: Mistress of Evil’).
Bridgerton season one (2020)
Yup, Mirojnick and Shonda Rhimes clearly work well together, because Mirojnick designed season one of this now-iconic Regency series!
“This wasn’t going to be a bonneted show. The difference between a Jane Austen [period] piece and ours is that we chose to shift it, to give it a more modern, more aspirational feel, one where a modern audience could look at it and perhaps say: I wish I could have that” (Bridgerton and the Art of Power Dressing).
Cinderella (2021)
Mirojnick did another Cinderella, this one a feature-film jukebox musical.
“It needed to be nontraditional, be classic and at the same time feminine and not similar at all to any of the other women in our village and in our show” (Billy Porter’s fabulous Fairy Godmother dress in ‘Cinderella’ is inspired by monarch butterflies, costume designer reveals).
Oppenheimer (2023)
The story of real-life physicist Robert Oppenheimer, who led the team that created the atom bomb during World War II. The film traces him from his early studies in the 1920s, through the war, up through 1954.
“He walks into his power in a way that separates the time periods, and he comes into his own… We changed the shape of his suiting slightly. We brought in the shoulders. We made the pants a bit more voluminous. And we used colors akin to a New Mexican landscape married with the intensity of the blue of his shirt, the solidness of his tie, the accent of his silver engraved belt buckle, and of course, his famous hat and pipe” (What Do Sharon Stone’s ‘Basic Instinct’ Dress and Oppenheimer’s Suit Have in Common?).
The Odyssey (coming 2026)
Director Christopher Nolan’s take on the ancient Greek classic tale about Odysseus wandering the Mediterranean post-Trojan War.
Which of Ellen Mirojnick’s historical (and fantasy) designs stand out to you?
Well, if those are supposed to be plus-fours on Robert Downey, then yes you can go wrong with them. Those are never four inches below the knee – they look more like knee-breeches.
As I recall, “Chaplin” was erratic, but Downey was a good Chaplin–all the casting worked–so there were some fine moments along the lines of “OMG, that’s Edna!!!” (A fave leading lady of his; how’s Edna Purviance for a glam screen name?) Most bio-pics are pretty anachronistic, but these designers usually captured the feel of the era. And that’s Geraldine Chaplin playing her own grandmother.
May I please point out that the Christian in those pictures of MOBSTERS is Mr Christian Slater?
If anyone wonders what that hellish baying, as of the very hounds of the Wild Hunt tearing into some poor cornered brute, might have been, that would be my reaction to learning that we could have had more of the lovely Ms. Sarah Bolger in fabulous period costume, but have been cheated of the spectacle by the wilting of GILDED LILYS (Please excuse me, I may need to look some more at some Fabulous Evil Queen Looks from that MALEFICENT film to cheer me up*).
*Despite my eternal regret that the duology hinges itself on:
(A) Making MALEFICENT a ‘good guy, honest’ when Ms. Angelina Jolie is so much FUN as a villainess
(B) Making Mistress Flora, Mistress Fauna and Mistress Merriwether look like incompetent idiots to make a character who was already an impeccably-competent stone cold icon in the original look better by comparison.
…
Man, Miss Elle Fanning does indeed look ‘Fairest of them All’ though.
That powder compact that Hailey Atwell is holding… classic Stratton, my mom has the same one in her collection of vintage powder compacts!
Not keen on the upcoming Odysseus movie judging by the pic. Homer describes the Greek warriors as having shiny bronze armour.
For instance, Achilles is described as “…blazing like the star
that rears at harvest, flaming up in its brilliance –
far outshining the countless stars in the night sky,
that star they call Orlon’s Dog – brightest of all
but a fatal sign emblazoned on the heavens,
it brings such killing fever down on wretched men.
So the bronze flared on his chest as on he raced.”
That helmet in the pic of Matt Damon looks like vacuformed plastic that has been spray painted.
OMG, Kendra. I can’t believe that you missed Mobsters in the 90s!!! I had a crush on EVERY.SINGLE.ONE. of those guys (even Richard Grieco, God help me!!!) and my little teenaged heart nearly exploded at the male finery in this movie!!! You should watch it! It’s not a masterpiece, but I think it might be a fun watch as an adult. Also, I recommend The Ghost in the Darkness. Val Kilmer is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL in the movie, and the movie itself isn’t bad. This was a fun post. I’ve seen several of these movies and have unwittingly admired this designer’s work over the years!
Someone uploaded Gilded Lilys to YT: https://youtu.be/pazt5JkYAMg?feature=shared
I loved Maleficent dresses too.