Famous for his simplistic designs, including Jackie Kennedy’s pillbox hat, Halston was a designer who changed modern fashion. From working with Liza Minelli and Joel Schumacher to his public persona, Halston was an icon and one that people still find inspiration from today (like famed designer Tom Ford).
Now, Netflix is bringing us a show about the designer from producer Ryan Murphy, and the pictures for Halston got me excited! I was intrigued by the prospect of this show, specifically because of the cast. With Ewan McGregor starring as Halston and Krysta Rodriguez coming in as Liza Minelli, it seemed like the cast of my dreams.
And these new pictures bring us Halston’s style mixed with the flair of a Murphy-backed production that we’ve come to know.
What I love about all these images is just how very ’70s they feel. Halston rose to fame in the ’70s, right at the height of Liza’s Cabaret fame and when fashion was at its peak. The Hollywood Reporter spoke with McGregor about the designer and how he hadn’t really known who Halston was prior to this.
“To find out that he was so massively famous in his time and I had never heard of him — that didn’t make much sense to me.”
“I could tell instantly from the photographs that I wanted to play him,” McGregor said. “I could just feel it. There’s something about the way you can see that he holds himself, something behind his eyes. There’s something so intriguing about him as a character.”
Halston was famous for his work and also had famous friends. As mentioned before, his relationship with Liza Minelli was an iconic part of his history, to the point where she wouldn’t reveal anything bad about her friend, even years later in the documentary Halston.
“Krysta Rodriguez in the role of the one and only Liza Minnelli. She really sings and dances all of these numbers with incredible skill and passion and gives 110 percent — just like Liza. Here she’s performing ‘Bonjour Paris. The reactions of the audience were real; she brought everyone to their feet,” director Daniel Minahan said to The Hollywood Reporter.
The show is probably going to get into the complex history with the designer, too. He was commanding about his looks, knew what he wanted to do, and exploring that aspect of him as an artist is fascinating.
“It was important to us that we dressed every one of Halston’s workspaces to be functional, with the correct sketches, newspapers, swatches and tools — right down to the yellow-lined pads and flair pens Halston actually used,” Minahan went on, and it’s that level of detail that has me interested in the prospect.
I love the polaroids that show a glimpse into the lifestyle the designer led and the people he associated with. Partying throughout Manhattan, he was on the scene with his friends and fellow creatives.
The show will also explore Halston’s relationship with Victor Hugo (Gian Franco Rodriguez).
I have a love/hate relationship with Ryan Murphy properties—meaning I love them all and I hate that I’m constantly consumed by Murphy and whatever story he’s telling me, no matter how absurd it tends to be. But, with Halston, it does seem right up his alley. While I had some problems with it, Murphy’s take on the assassination of Gianni Versace in American Crime Story was a good look into the fashion icon. (To be fair, Halston is written by Sharr White and directed by Daniel Minahan, so it’s a different kind of Murphy venture in that he’s just producing.)
I’m excited to see where Halston takes us and yes, a big part of that is Ewan McGregor. Can you blame me?
(images: ATSUSHI NISHIJIMA/NETFLIX)
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