How did you come to work on The Studio, and what drew you to the project?
The town was pretty quiet at the time because of the writers’ strike. Vanessa Price, head of the hair department, and I were offered a series we were ready to accept, but the script had a really dark subject matter that left a bad taste in my mouth. When I talked it over with Vanessa, she mentioned another project she was attached to — a comedy that would start a little later. I realized I’d much rather hold out for that one. We needed something that would let us laugh and enjoy work again. I’m so glad I followed my heart rather than my head. Working on The Studio has been one of my most rewarding jobs to date!
Can you walk us through the specific looks designed for some of the key characters, and how their makeup choices helped define who they are?
The script didn’t specify the main characters’ looks, so we collaborated closely with the set designer and costumer, who shared references and fitting photos. We realized the tone was leaning toward an old Hollywood aesthetic— stylized, high-concept comedy. It was a dream come true. I had so much fun designing looks for the main cast members to the background actors.
Matt Remic (Seth Rogen) has old Hollywood taste in cars, clothes, and architecture. Since he’s often in his classic convertibles, I used Suntegrity 5-in-1 in a medium tint. It gave him that effortless Hollywood glow without looking like makeup. I added mineral water mist for extra glow and even a touch of sweat. It’s also skin-friendly, which matters because heavy makeup can cause breakouts after long shoot weeks. I prefer to keep things light, using concealer only where needed. We kept Quinn (Chase Sui Wonders) makeup in earth tones. She wanted her character to try and fit in with the boys to succeed. By the finale, we shifted her look and went more feminine.
How did you use hair and makeup to reflect the characters’ transformations or unraveling arcs throughout the series?
Usually, you talk to the actors about which episode they feel they have reached an arc, and most likely change their look. Again, for Quinn, she chops off her hair for the finale, but goes more glam with her makeup in a seductive way to play her hand. Quinn’s plan fails when she’s dosed on mushrooms, letting her makeup melt off naturally until we see her on stage for the last scene.
Griffin Mills (Bryan Cranston) is fighting the aging process by dyeing his hair, beard, and brows, and getting a spray tan Once his mushrooms kick in, he has a psychological and physical meltdown found in the grotto at the Venetian hotel fountain. Blue ice cream and hair dye smears across his face. I presented him with that idea on day one when we did a hair and makeup test. We ran it by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and got it approved.
What about makeup for Kathryn Hahn’s character?
We had to scale “Mama Hahn’s” makeup back because her hair and costumes were so high-concept that we couldn’t do much without it looking too clownish. We settled on some fun press-on nails. I designed some of the nails, but letting the team take part in the design is important to the process. Giving a team creative autonomy creates trust, building a family that lifts each other. Allowing creative freedom to your team makes things sustainable and harmonious.
Were there any iconic figures or styles that influenced your designs?
In the episode, “The Oner,” Greta Lee was playing a version of herself, and for her look, I drew inspiration from Maggie Cheung’s character in In the Mood for Love. That classic 1960s sharp cat eye and lashes felt like the perfect reference. The sequence was shot over four days but designed to appear as one continuous take, all during “golden hour” between 5 and 6 p.m. Keeping Greta flawless under those conditions was a real challenge — especially as I was sprinting from the exterior back inside to touch up Seth’s character’s bloody nose. There were definitely moments I wished I could clone myself! Fortunately, I had a fantastic makeup team who made it all possible.
The show has so many great cameos. Can you share the creative process behind designing some of those looks?
Most of the cameos were people playing a character of themselves, so we let them and their personal makeup artist handle their looks. Olivia Wilde’s character needed a tattoo based on the film she was directing. The writers had scrapped the “gang name” for legal infringement reasons, but also did not want to glorify gang activity in Los Angeles. While they were discussing what they should call the gang, I suggested 7th Street because of the newly restored 7th Street bridge in downtown LA. We settled on the tattoo as a number 7 with flames as a background. My 16-year-old did the art, and the tattoo was in two scenes in Episode 4.
Is there a particular moment or look in The Studio that you’re most proud of?
I can’t think of just one thing that I’m most proud of about this show. Maybe that I created an A-list of makeup artists to work on the show who were all so excellent at what they do. They went above and beyond for The Studio and me!
Words Shannon Levy
Photos Courtesy of Apple TV
