The latest series in Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” series, “1923,” tells the story of a world in transition. The rural, classically Western values of “1883” are colliding with the modern technology of washing machines and automobiles, and the mythology’s reach has expanded beyond America to follow characters from all over the world. This presented great challenges and exciting opportunities for costume designer Janie Bryant, who was tasked with creating wardrobes for hundreds of actors and stunt performers, as well as thousands of extras. “We shot the show on three continents and I had four costume designers: one in Los Angeles, one in Montana, one in South Africa and one in Malta,” Bryant told IndieWire. “You have to take it a few days at a time or a week at a time. You can’t think of everything at once because it’s too overwhelming.
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Bryant began with meticulous research into the period and cultures under study, working closely with Native American consultants to dress Teonna Rainwater (Aminah Nieves) and her classmates at a Montana school for indigenous students. “That was actually my favorite part of the story,” Bryant said. “I love that Teonna is pure survival, and I love that story of the strength of the human spirit.”
Counselor Mo Brings Plenty came from a school like the one depicted in the series and proved to be an invaluable resource. “We talked about how many of their clothes were darned. It was all second hand and would have a very aged and distressed look. The gray color was also very important because it is institutional. The uniforms were all different shades of gray, and there were a couple of different fabrics within that world for girls’ clothing; the idea was that the tops and skirts had all been washed in different garments, so they wouldn’t all be the same tone of gray. And then many of the costumes were hand darned where a garment had been torn and then sewn back on.
While designing schoolboys’ clothes was all about creating a cold, institutional feeling, Bryant took a completely different approach to Alexandra (Julia Schalepfer), an English noblewoman who falls in love with adventurer Spencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar) while on safari in Kenya . “It was important for her to start glamorous because we want to see her world of opulence, money and privilege,” Bryant said. “Then when we see her in her safari suit of hers, I wanted her to have a costume where she was able to peel pieces of her off as she peeled off pieces of her of her social roots of her, so to speak . So the first thing she loses about her is her scarf, and then when she lets her hair down it’s a mess. She is wearing no makeup, she is losing her belt. Hers gets dirty and her safari suit goes through the entire trip with her—as her world is ripped apart, her suit is ripped apart at the same time. She then ends up having a super glamorous moment in a ballroom that’s where she comes from, and she fits in there, but the irony is that she really doesn’t want to be in that world.
In the video below, Janie Bryant talks about these and other key “1923” costumes.
Costumes from “1923”
Naturally, some of Bryant’s most iconic “1923” looks were designed for lead characters Jacob Dutton and Cara Dutton, played by Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. Bryant worked closely with both actors, quickly finding common ground with Mirren. “We both thought very similarly about what Cara Dutton would look like,” Bryant said. “My idea was that she would be more old-fashioned and with clothes from ten or twenty years ago. The waist was accentuated, the A-line skirt was very period-inspired. She’s a woman from another era and it was nice to make her seem different from the rest of the cast, like she was more comfortable than she was in an almost Victorian period like when she was growing up. When they’re older, people don’t keep up with fashion, so that was an important aspect of her character.
For Ford, the right hat was the key to creating a new classic western hero. “Oh my god, I’ve tried so many hats on Harrison,” Bryant said. “There were probably 50 to 75 hats that he tried on. But the hat I always came back to and talked about with Harrison was a Montana crease hat. That’s just what I kept imagining and he liked that hat too. I called the hat we ended up with the Jacob because it was made especially for him. Other Jacob Dutton costumes were much easier to choose. “I remember we had our first rehearsal and he looked in the three-way mirror and stuck his hands in the pockets of his navy wool coat, and he said, ‘This is fucking perfect.’ I thought, ‘Well, you can’t get any better than this.’”
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