For award winning costume designer Michele Clapton, clothing should tell a story. Her creations for Game of Thrones are incredibly detailed and symbolic; as much a part of the narrative as the characters themselves. Their journeys are mirrored in the costumes they wear, and their journeys are beginning to come to a close.
In a new interview with Uproxx, Clapton breaks down the season seven wardrobe choices for four of the main characters and asserts that – in a way – their clothing symbolizes the approaching endgame for each of them. “It’s a foretelling of things,” she says. “It’s the coming to the end.” For one character in particular, Clapton reveals two key plot points for the upcoming season. MAJOR spoilers below the cut!
When Jon Snow (Kit Harington) resigned as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch last season, he ditched his blacks for a heavily Northern, Stark-inspired ensemble. “He really embraces this Northern, over-the-Wall style, the Wildling style, and the reason he embraces it is because it’s practical,” Clapton says. Jon won’t always be laden in fur, however. “Kit [Harington] was delighted that he didn’t have the big heavy cape…he could fight and move and I think it was a really interesting process just to take him out into this new look.”
“We had a lot of discussions about does the cape give him presence or is it better to not have that presence? What are we trying to say?” Clapton then confirms two meetings that many have suspected were on the horizon for Jon. “There are times when we removed it because we wanted him to be more vulnerable. Especially I think, when he saw Dany, and he went to see her for the first time in her chamber. We decided to remove it, but then when he went to see Cersei, we put it on.” Considering the chilly reception Cersei is likely to give, that was probably a wise choice.
Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) has come a long way in six seasons, from frightened child to dragon queen. Her impending arrival in Westeros necessitated a new look for the Targaryen would-be conqueror. “She’s this figurehead of her army. I wanted her to be able to stand in front of the Unsullied and be their leader,” Clapton explains.
Her clothing has a militaristic feel with the colors of her House (red and black) finally on display. Clapton decided to forego a crown, at least for now. “She can’t have a crown, she hasn’t conquered yet,” she says. “But I loved this [idea] of this chain of intent.” Dany’s look is inspired by her brother Viserys’ season one attire. “I think it’s quite interesting that we finally see her embracing her brother’s ambition…You’re seeing the beginning of something. We’re not at the end yet and I think it’s very important at this moment that we start seeing who she is.”
Cersei’s (Lena Headey) and Sansa’s (Sophie Turner) outfits are about projecting strength, but there are subtle differences between the two. For Cersei, there is a fragility to her power. Her simple black dress is imposing and almost militaristic, but the beading and accessories are “quite brittle and it’s all an adornment…She has a collar and she has these shoulder pieces, but they’re separate from the dress,” she explains. “She’s in mourning. She puts these things on to show strength but there’s a brittleness in that strength.”
For Sansa, “I wanted a real strength.” Clapton adds. “I think that she’s embraced everything that’s happened to her.” This is quite a change – almost a reversing of roles – from the positions these two women occupied in season one. There is also a protective element to the dress and heavy belt Sansa wears this season. “It’s almost like ‘no one will ever get to me again. There’s an armor to her.” Let’s just hope it will keep Littlefinger at bay.
Read the rest at Uproxx.
Hold the green and gold brocade!
He’s dead and buried! When the sun has set, no candle can replace it.
Mr Fixit,
Indeed. What a…what a force to be reckoned with
First?
She’s brilliant! 🙂
Ah I thought Michelle Clapton had moved on. Good to hear she is still there
She has created some fantastic costumes. All of these are no exceptions
Dany’s outfit is great for this season, good to move on from the blue thing and it really does have a Targaryen feel to it
Really digging Cersei’s outfit too with the changed Kingsguard/Queensguard Armour
The Crown comments are interesting, it irritated me a tad we never saw Stannis or Robb wearing Crowns, if they want to be claimants they have to look the part
I do hope to see Jon looking more Regal in future, in particular to see the Northern crown make an appearance. It’s not just the costume,
But the Winterfellset they used in S1 had Robb and S2 had Bran and Rickon had them elevated while holding Winterfell Court unlike the Hall room table where he is now where he is on a level height with all the Lords etc
This is important, there’s a reason why the area with an old Ships Captain would be elevated, it invited mutiny if it is level with the rest of the Ship
Mr Derp,
Didn’t Cersei kill you? How are you still alive?
Sansa doesn’t need a dress & belt to keep Littlefinger at bay; she has a sister with a sharp knife & a thirst for vengeance.
Mr Fixit,
My friend is a subscriber to the Lord of Light. Normally I wouldn’t be interested in such things, but there was a sale going on that day. I believe it was join today and get one resurrection for free!
“Especially I think, when he saw Dany, and he went to see her for the first time in her chamber.”
I really want to see this. We’ll see Jon and Dany flirting?
My sweet summer child.
She should just give us the show’s ending too while she’s at it lmao. Not that it would be surprise or anything.
Mr Fixit,
It’s a possibility.
Okay just how much trouble is Michele Clapton going to get into for this interview? She basically described the setting for the first meeting between Jon and Dany!
It’s amazing the amount of thought and detailing that goes into making each of these costumes.
Flayed Potatoes,
It’s obviously going to be a Sopranos style fade to black. Hot Pie will be sitting at a table at the Inn at the Crossroads, someone will enter, he’ll look up, and then……fade to black!
I assume you are referencing the paragraph above Dany’s pic. My eyes widened. Wow…very spoilery…for me, at least.
Oh boy…I’m wary of that comment. Hopefully, Dany puts her brother’s ambitions in perspective. Interesting that Viserys often mentioned “don’t wake the dragon”...too bad he never got to live to see his sister wake three of them.
she gets done saying cersei’s outfit is to represent brittleness and sansa’s represents her strength and yet sansa’s chain looks flimsier than cersei’s? im not getting her spoken representation when i look at those pics side by side.
Holy **** this is a huge spoiler for people that haven’t read the leaks. Although, many naturally assume they’ll meet anyways, but still…..
Her commentary on the costumes was wonderful though. This show has always been stellar with its costumes. It’s one of the few series that meticulous weaves costume design into the actual plot. Literally every minute detail connects on the show.
Raul,
I’m curious what “chamber” she is referring to, since it could just be her audience chamber. I think many people automatically jump to another conclusion.
Hmm for some reason, the site never wants to display my replies to Mr Derp 🙁
Flayed Potatoes,
You’ve just been derped!
In all seriousness, that seems to be a thing for some reason and it previously made me wonder if I needed to change my name. That thought is now becoming a reality once again.
Michelle has no chill lol.And Dany also looks extra pretty for that first meeting.Love the hair down.I also approve of the use of the cape in a later scene.
Flayed Potatoes,
Omg I just saw your gravatar and I can’t get over it lmao!!
@ Mr Derp: Again I can’t reply to you. Even when I try to edit a direct reply in an existing comment it’s marked as spam. Maybe it’s the username.
Jenny,
What scene are you talking about? (If you are thinking what I am thinking lol)
ghost of winterfell,
Gilly will save the world lmfao!
ghost of winterfell,
The stairs scene lol.All that wind
I was going to say “Wow I can’t believe she’s spoiled that” but at the same post I almost described the spoiler itself.
#NobodysPerfect
Flayed Potatoes,
That’s literally my favourite thing that will happen this season lol.
I’m interested to see more detail of what Arya will be wearing this season. And Ghost, of course. He probably looks around at all the furs and thinks “Screw it, I’m wearing a human cape today.”
Vanessa Cole,
I thought exactly the same as we have seen a couple of shots of her in the audience chamber. This time next week the excitement will be too much to bear, will only have 25mins to go (9pm UK time)
I know! 😉
Doubt Michele meant it like this, but the sentence can definitely give the impression that Jon’ll be visiting both Dany’s and Cersei’s chambers. What a busy boy!
That’s a good point. I usually love all the costumes. Yet, they did put a “crown” on Euron, that stupid twig thing, and it completely negated any notion of royalty or power for me. With his wet, unruly curls and that sad pile of driftwood on his head, he looked more like a dopey drunken teenager than … ahem, a force to be reckoned with. This is a pirate who plundered his way across his world, meaning gold and silver. If they wanted nature plus royalty, a driftwood crown shaped in gold would have had better effect, imho. Granted, the Iron Islanders are different, but this made them look silly. Sorry, that’s bothered me since the episode aired. I was glad Yara stole the ships.
Hmmm, in her chamber, huh? Yes, I want to see this, too. We’ve seen him with a loincloth draped across, but he was dead at the time, so it didn’t count. What does a Northman wear for undergarments? Or were there such things for men at that time?
Less than a week. Thank you WotW for helping us make it through a whole effing year.
Isabelle,
He’s been at the wall a lllooonngggg time!!! 😂😂
I’m shipping this threesome now lol
Flayed Potatoes,
This would certainly be a plot twist.
There is more to process here in an interview about clothing than I think any interview I’ve seen all week. Haha
Jon goes to see Cersi; actually more excited about this, will he be there with just Davos in the throne room on their tour Westeros 2.0. Trying to imagine Jon disregarding the previous family War to focus on white walkers, while all Cersi wants to do is talk politics. Really dangerous if he just goes alone, trusting Cersi to let him go.
Jon really hasn’t done any harm to them. Davos can vouch for Jon coming back to life, satisfying his vow, though they won’t care. He can say he took his home back from norther aggressors, something the Lannisters would not have hesitated to do either. There really are more grievances for the Starks to forgive, so maybe if he approaches it that way, they will at least listen. Idk so much could happen.
Would also like a sword fighting comment from Jon and Jamie. Similar banter to Ramsey; maybe Jon slips that verbal jab with a smirk, and that’s the scene where Jamie is grimacing in the throne room. Lol
Side note: be funny if Jon and Tyrion had a laugh about Slynt.
That he has!! Our boy deserves some snuggling!
Poor dear Jaime. Do you think he could skip guard duty?
Damn those are some spoilers, I hope she doesn’t get in trouble for talking about two such big meetings. I can’t help but wonder if this article was actually meant to be released later in the season after we were aware of these meetings as I don’t know why she would talk about such big spoilers no one else has but I understand later in the season she’ll probably be too busy designing the outfits for S8
Not to be a hater, but i highly doubt the costume designer is the one thay gets a final say on if dany wears a crown or not this season
Got sidetracked on my mini-rant about Euron’s crown, but meant to say Jon’s costume looks wonderfully regal and impressive. His cape this year is far more refined and elegant looking than the shaggy one he wore as Lord Commander of the NW. Although, I will say he carries anything he wears very well. When he was striding north of the Wall to go find Mance, he made that shaggy cape look worthy. His new “uniform” looks to be made of very finely tooled, high quality leather. The slicked-back hair gives him an air of authority, control and maturity as well. Go Jon, you’re going to need all the authority you can muster when you face Cersei.
Dany always looks good, but what a change her costumes have gone through. That gorgeous white dress she wore in S5-9, just before Drogon rescued her from Daznak’s Pit was the epitome of cool elegance, perfect for a queen. Yet her costume this year, heavier material to suit the weather and made in the Targaryen colors, seems just as perfect for Dragonstone. I’m afraid Emilia would have a bit of trouble balancing those heavy wigs and a crown, so maybe better there’s no crown yet. Love, love the design of the chain, though. The craftsmanship of that immediately says “royalty.” Of all the chains, like this the most. Almost as good as a crown.
Cersei’s costume gives her the look of a very long sleek neck. But I would call those steel shoulders almost warrior-like. She knows she’s in for a battle from all sides – the shoulders and chain accentuate her frame of mind.
Jesus fucking Christ. Massive spoilers out the wazoo. Hope she doesn’t get fired or anything. Not that the first of these two meetings will surprise too many people, but still, it’s strange that she would talk so openly about this stuff.
Isabelle,
A foursome then? Keeping it in the family I see 😛
Guess we’ve figured out the plot of the spin off!
Hahaha 😀 😀 😀 – She doesn’t give a flying fuck!
Huntermac87,
Thank the seven gods, atleast someone is excited about jon and cersei… I really want to see that interaction.
Plus jon staying apart from the rest of westros would create many good scenes:
cersei, dany, tyrion, jamie, theon, and mainly varys….
Isabelle,
Jonercei? The sex scene I didn’t know I wanted 🙂
Holy spoiler, Clapton! 🙂
Not a spoiler if you have read this article and watched trailer2, just putting two and two together.
arthavitt,
All those scenes! I hadn’t even thought about him talking to Varys. Hell Varys could be the one that hears about Jon returning from the dead, i could see a comment from him like that.
Either way i think some legend needs to be spreading in broader Westeros of the resurrected Lord Commander, now KITN. Same way they established with Ramseys comment about sword fighting, that Jon has a reputation as a bad ass! On that note Jon and Jamie convo would be great too
Sacred Lime,
Oh yea thats a good point, i def think that comment is directed at her now! I really hope we get a one on one meeting between them, before all parties meet together. Can see Jon making a comment like I dont care about the Dragon or the Lion Queens claim to throne, we need to fight the White Walkers. I didn’t unify the north to fight the south, i unified them to fight the coming storm.
So yet another confirmation of the leaks but probably something many could suspect given the story condensing and the trailers. Still I suspect Michelle may get in trouble for these confirmations.
Also I agree it sounds like Jon is actually talking to Cersei in the trailer and not Dany as many of us first suspected.