Opulent maternity wear and a ‘war dress’ play into ‘The Great’

Hulu’s hit series “The Great” is showrunner Tony McNamara’s comedic, fictionalized take on Russia’s Catherine the Great. It’s ribald, full of sex, saucy language, courtly intrigue and machinations, and gorgeous opulent costumes, which is where London-based designer Sharon Long comes in. She was tasked with creating the sartorial world in which Catherine (Elle Fanning) and Emperor Peter III (Nicholas Hoult) do battle inside a hilarious yet dangerous world. “We tried to up the visual ante,” says Long, who is working on Season 3 filming in London during its recent heat wave.

Is it fair to say this Catherine the Great has the most fabulous wardrobe of any Catherine on film?

(Laughs) Well, certainly the most unhistorical.…

How many costumes did you create just for Elle Fanning? There seemed to be scores and scores.

I didn’t count, but likely about 40. It might be less, because sometimes when you’re making costumes you try and reuse different parts so you’re not repeatedly making skirts and such. Not because of budget but just for time’s sake.

Costumes for this season were sourced, created and shot during the U.K. pandemic lockdown. On a costume-heavy show like this, that must have been difficult.

Yes, it was shot during the complete lockdown. We were allowed to carry on filming, which was a surprise, but great. And it’s interesting, because we’re now filming Season 3 without the protections of the lockdown but still with COVID, and it’s harder because more people are getting sick. Worker wise, it’s much tougher.

Your Russian royal court has very modern fabrics, cuts and sensibilities mixed into it, which isn’t strictly period.

For people who do period film and TV of a certain era, you can’t use original fabrics, because they’re not there. So if you’re doing the 18th century you have no choice but to use modern fabrics. There’s only a very small set of fabrics that could fit that slot, and, especially if you’re in lockdown, it’s too tough to get. I asked someone who worked on “Dangerous Liaisons” about some of those beautiful fabrics in those costumes, and he claimed they were original fabrics and that they no longer exist, that was it. They got fabrics original to the period and then they’re gone.

You could not travel or shop anywhere, either.

No, we were at a big disadvantage as we weren’t able to get to the antique market in London. We had some really fantastic dealers who sent things to us, so the Royal Mail was doing this great job. Otherwise, it felt like we were on an island.

Catherine was pregnant through much of the season, though Elle was not. Did you enjoy creating her pregnancy wardrobe? It was beautiful.

Yes, I’m glad you thought so; I really loved her pregnancy clothing. There were some historical references for that time period regarding pregnancy outfitting but not much, so it gave us a freedom to interpret. There were pregnancy corsets we had all custom made and are quite expensive and laborious to make. There were certain robes of the time period, and those were my favorite. As she grew, it gave us a lovely kind of volume that I really liked.

Velementov (Douglas Hodge), Catherine (Elle Fanning), Sunduk (Raphael Acloque), and Peter (Nicholas Hoult) in a scene from season 2.

(Gareth Gatrell / Hulu)

Catherine the Great’s real coronation dress is in the Moscow Kremlin museum and looks nothing like the show’s coronation costume. How did you decide on your look?

It was Tony’s decision, as he wrote the scene a specific way, wanting Catherine to go Russian. It was quite a complicated costume, actually. The skirt has three layers: gold brocade, then a layer of gold lace and then on top a sequined net. It was built out of shimmery layers and gave it that Russian aura. The gorgeous gold kokoshnik traditional Russian headpiece was made in-house.

Someone should send it to Rhianna; can’t you see her or Beyoncé wearing it at a Met Ball?

It might start a fun trend!

Peter had that kind of Jim Morrison rock-star vibe, with the glam tight pants and loose ruffled open shirts and necklaces. I take it this was intentional?

I wanted Peter to have a decadent look because he’s utterly charming though quite amoral. He must be very attractive even though he’s doing things that are ghastly. One of his jackets is similar to one I saw on Cat Stevens back in the day, a fur-collared velvet piece we loved.

My favorite costume is the oyster and oxblood “war dress,” as you call it, that Catherine wears toward the end of the series. She has to do a lot in that dress. There’s a lot of stabbing and killing in that dress.

(Laughs) I thought the blood needed to show, because it’s horrific. So, in my mind, she was in some sort of pale color. The real Catherine often wore uniforms in these situations, but I wanted to keep it softer so it’s more of a riding look. And I wanted to use the juxtaposition of the deep red and oyster colors to show how devastating it is when she kills somebody. She’s now participating in the things that she complains about and abhors.

Gillian Anderson (as Joanna, Catherine’s mother) barged onto the scene in bold saturated colors with huge skirts and amazing hats and is very much “trouble’s here!”

I must say, Gillian is not a shrinking violet; she has a very strong screen presence always. So she has that unique “wow” feel the moment we see her — she’s bad news. Also, Russia wasn’t the height of the fashion world then, and Joanna was a German princess, so I wanted her to look quite modern. So she’s got the largest panniers, the larger hats, the strong bold colors, and you definitely know she’s there, and you can’t get away from her. They were a lot of fun, her costumes.

Elle Fanning in a gown for “The Great.”

(Gareth Gatrell /Hulu)