When Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theaters next week, it’ll pretty much shatter a surprising record for the franchise at large by having more costumes than ever before in a Star Wars film.
The Star Wars YouTube channel released a new featurette on Tuesday called “Making Solo,” and it focuses on the photography and costume design for Solo: A Star Wars Story. In addition to offering several design insights — like how the film brightens as it progresses — the video also has costume designer David Crossman drop the following bombshell: “This particular film has been the most costumes we’ve ever produced for a Star Wars film,” Crossman said. “We’ve made well over a thousand costumes for this.” Not only is that incredibly surprising, but it’s kind of a huge deal for the franchise. Crossman hasn’t worked on Episodes I through VI, but the MPAA confirmed that Solo has more than any other Star Wars film ever.
So when you stop and think about the epic, overwhelming crowd shots from previous Star Wars movies — like in the Canto Blight casino, Maz Kanata’s castle, the city on Jedha, Jabba’s Palace, or even the Cantina on Tatooine — know that Solo will outdo every one.
'Solo' has a staggering number of unique character costumes.
This more holistic approach to costuming seemingly informed and reinforced the overall design of the movie. In another part of the video, director Ron Howard explains how Bradford Young — the director of photography — uses a cinematic style that “visually builds from character and story,” which makes Solo sound indie-AF. You won’t see tons of CGI droids fighting CGI stormtroopers, because it looks like just about every environment and character in Solo is legit.
Young himself calls the film “a Star Wars film about rebels on the run.” As such, he wanted it to have “characters putting their feet on natural surfaces.” An important part of making the most naturalistic Star Wars film ever was in building out the scenery with more uniquely designed characters. Makeup designer Amanda Knight also explains that simplicity in character design is what gives Star Wars its unique style. “The simple, strong looks always work better,” Knight says.
Paul Bettany as Dyrden Vos, a gangster in 'Solo: A Star Wars Story'
That’s the overall approach taken to designing the characters in Solo: A Star Wars Story, whether it’s Lando with his many stylish capes or any of the many unnamed side characters featured in the video.
Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theaters on May 25.
