Game of clones

How movies and TV shows influence fashion

During the golden age of cinema, nothing could beat Hollywood movies for creating screen goddesses who became style icons that set fashion trends. Back in the day, what woman didn’t want to feel as glam as Audrey Hepburn having Breakfast at Tiffany’s, as sexy as Marilyn Monroe getting her skirt ventilated in The Seven Year Itch, or as beautifully tragic as Ingrid Bergman in her Casablanca hat?

These days, however, are being billed the golden age of television, and it seems that TV is generating more trends than movies, with a few exceptions that we’ll talk about later.

Exhibit A: Game of Thrones is not only the TV equivalent of crack to most people, it’s also unleashed a Blackwater Rush of fashion and beauty trends the likes of which we haven’t seen since Sex and the City. Well, almost.

At the mall I see young Pinays sporting Daenerys’ signature braids, and on YouTube, tutorials abound on how to get Sansa Stark’s soft waves or Arya Stark’s thick eyebrows. (Shout-out to model-actress Cara Delevingne, who’s rocked the look for a while now.)

But — maybe because all women want to feel as powerful as the Mother of Dragons or as desirable as She Who Got Jon Snow to Call Her His Queen — it’s Daenerys Targaryen who seems to have gotten everyone to bend the knee. As far back as GoT’s fourth season, lifestyle website Female First reported that “the UK is becoming a nation of platinum-blonde, strong-browed women inspired by the key character, Daenerys Targaryen.”

Not only did sales of platinum hair color and eyebrow-grooming kits jump, so did auburn hair dye, thanks to the red tresses of Sansa and the Red Witch, Melisandre. Meanwhile, fans aspiring to achieve the chiseled cheekbones of Cersei Lannister bought contouring brushes and makeup.

It’s clear that Game of Thrones has spawned a game of clones, and even celebrities aren’t immune to aping their favorite GoT glamour pusses. Madonna posted a photo of herself as Khaleesi on Instagram, complete with platinum braids and Dothraki-inspired leather corset.  Inspired by a caped white gown that Daenerys wore to the Meereen fighting pits, a very pregnant Kim Kardashian wore a nearly identical Valentino gown on the red carpet.  J. Lo was taken by Dany’s more revealing Meereen style, donning a similarly cutout gown in 2015. Most recently, Katy Perry, who hosted the Video Music Awards — which aired at the same time as the Game of Thrones finale — welcomed late-coming viewers dressed as Daenerys, while her pet dog Nugget was decked out as Drogon. Too cute.

You would never think of The Wall as a fashion mecca but even Jon Snow’s Night’s Watch furs inspired no less than fashion icon Kate Moss to take the black, in a wild(ling) coat of her own.

Post-Season 7 finale, I’m expecting Sansa’s hooded cloak to become a trending item in countries where winter is actually coming, and think it’s about time for a guyliner comeback a la the Dothraki horse lords and that swaggering punk everybody loves to hate, Euron Greyjoy.

Peaks of fashion

Another TV series that inspired fashion trends in its heyday was Twin Peaks, The Return of which wrapped up a week after Game of Thrones. Though the beautiful starlets of director David Lynch’s series — which explored small-town America’s dark underbelly in trippy, surreal fashion — are now firmly in middle age, back in the ’90s characters like sex kitten Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) and good girl-next-door Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) kicked off a passion for blush pink, preppy argyle sweaters and plaid schoolgirl skirts that were more naughty than nice. So iconic was the retro ’50s look Lynch created for Twin Peaks that fast-fashion giant H&M created a whole advertising campaign around it, starring singer Lana del Rey.

Twin Peaks: The Return isn’t quite as fashionista — a red-curtained room with black-and-white zigzag flooring makes the strongest design statement — but Laura Dern, who plays Agent Dale Cooper’s secretary with a platinum bob, Cleopatra eyeliner and multicolored nails — may start a few beauty trends of her own.

Dial it up to eleven

Another character with a strong, unforgettable look is Eleven from Stranger Things, played by Millie Bobby Brown. The young actress’ brave decision to shave her head for the role empowered a number of young women to follow suit, most notably British model Ruth Bell, who rose to become a top runway model thanks to a similarly arresting buzz cut.

While TV and social media spread new fashion looks, it’s comforting to know that two beloved franchise reboots have been rocking the red carpets recently: Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Wonder Woman.

Remember Princess Leia’s cinnamon buns? New heroine Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) boasted her own buns — three going down the back of her head — in The Force Awakens, coupled with desert fashion suitable for running and scavenging on the sands of Jakku. Celebs Emma Watson and Katy Perry took note of and coopted Rey’s galactically hip hairdo: Watson pulling her hair back into a double bun for her Beauty and the Beast press tour — matching it with a futuristic-looking Louis Vuitton gown — while Perry strode the Brit Awards red carpet with multiple Rey buns adorning her pretty head and earth-toned outfit.

Wonder women

Meanwhile, in a galaxy far, far away, on a fictional island known as Themyscira, Wonder Woman, played by the spectacular Gal Gadot, actually inspired a few fashion lines of her own.  Though only those built like Gadot and Lynda Carter would admittedly look good in a red, gold and blue bathing suit, you don’t have to be an Amazon to wear the Wonder Woman dress by geek apparel company Elhoffer Design, or how about an entire Wonder Woman wardrobe? Clothing brand Her Universe, in collaboration with fashion retailer Hot Topic, released a limited-edition collection in tandem with the movie, featuring items like the Golden Lasso of Truth dress and Themyscira romper. Personally I’d love to rock the Wonder Woman Moto jacket.

It’s ironic that, while strong women are currently dominating Hollywood TV and movie screens, a woman can’t even get elected as US president, but the dream lives on in little girls empowered by their favorite icons.  At this year’s Comic-Con, Gadot comforted a young fan dressed as Wonder Woman, who was in tears at meeting her idol. “Aww, but now we’re friends, so there’s no reason to cry anymore, right?” the Israeli star told her. Later, the little girl’s mom posted on Facebook that her daughter would remember the moment for the rest of her life.

So, even if it manifests as just a Dany braid or a Diana of Themyscira outfit, there is power in looking like our heroines. It’s not just meaningless cosplay but an act that endows us with the ineffable magic of their superpowers, whether we aspire to be Wonder Woman or an Iron Throne queen.