The Hair and Makeup in Cinderella Is Full of Hidden Meanings

Published on Sep 3, 2021 at 9:00 AM

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The story of Cinderella is one many of us are very familiar with, but the Amazon Prime Video movie directed by Kay Cannon, set to release on Sept. 3, is unlike any version of the fairy tale you've seen before. A distressed Cinderella pining for a prince to whisk her away was replaced with an aspiring businesswoman; the fairy godmother received their own makeover and the role was subsequently taken over by Fab G (played by Billy Porter); and the princesses in attendance at the royal ball were all given their own unique look, including a hand-painted gold leaf illustration decorating one princess's bald head.

The hair and makeup in the film had to live up to the story being told, and judging by the three-minute trailer, it certainly does. From the stepmother (played by Idina Menzel) to the countless extras in the big dance numbers, no makeup look or hairstyle is repeated. To understand the scale of the project, the movie's hair and makeup department head Sharon Martin first looked at the set and the costume design.

"How big are we going? How big are the dresses?" Martin told POPSUGAR. Then she was able to ask herself: "How high can we go with the hair?" She took inspiration from runway shows and couture fashion to create the opulent looks you see in the film, but the beauty in Cinderella serves a bigger purpose than just to look pretty — it symbolizes a deeper theme in the reimagined princess story. Martin shares exactly what that means, plus more hidden meanings to look out for in the film's hair and makeup ahead.

How the Hair and Makeup in Cinderella Was About Empowerment

Women empowerment is a clear overarching theme of Cinderella. With that in mind, Martin said, "In this film, we don't have ugly sisters — we're not here to put women down." That sentiment is upheld in Cinderella's (played by Camila Cabello) attitude about the ball and the prospect of meeting a prince. "The beauty of this Cinderella is she wants a life," said Martin. "She wants to do something with her life. She's not necessarily just waiting for the prince. She's more waiting for an opportunity."

That theme granted Martin permission to really expand on what the women in this fairy tale looked like. "Our women could look strong; our women could look fierce, and that's what I set out to do," she said. "[I wanted] bold looks for them, not just the nicely blushing, fainting [look] just because a beautiful man speaks to them or something like that."

The Surprising Inspiration Behind the Stepsisters and Stepmother's Look

There may not be "ugly" stepsisters in this version of Cinderella, but the stepmother, Vivian, is still a force to be reckoned with. "We kind of described her as a woman on the edge," said Martin. "So, she is pulled together, but there is a slight kind of messiness to her, because she has this intention to get these girls off her hands." That's shown in the hair and makeup numerous times when we see the stepsisters perfectly dressed and looking like they could go to a ball at any minute, but Vivian "hasn't completely gotten herself ready" because she's so focused on the girls.

As for the stepsisters, Drizella (played by Charlotte Spencer) and Anastasia (played by Maddie Baillio), they each have a very different look. Martin described Anastasia as having a look of innocence about her, while Drizella, is more into the hair, makeup, and fashion — and finding a husband. "I think of her as a Kardashian," said Martin. "She was always fully made up — you couldn't tell if she had just woken up or if she's going to a ball."

The Story Behind Billy Porter's Look as the Fab G

In this version of Cinderella's story, the role of the fairy godmother, now named Fab G, was filled by Porter. When we're first introduced to his character, he's dressed in a stunning gold and black long-sleeved gown. "We didn't want to lose Billy, for a start, because he has a great look," said Martin. On his eyes, he wore cat-eye liner and feather-like faux lashes, but Martin explained they didn't want to give him a drag look — instead, they wanted to normalize a man wearing makeup just because. "It's just a man in makeup with a fabulous dress."

The 1 Product That Was a Must In Every Hair Kit on Set

Martin and her team had to create a lot of hairstyles for the film — and not just any hairstyles, but gravity-defying, larger-than-life hairstyles. Quite a few hair products were needed to pull off the exhibition, but there was one that stood out as a must have in every hair kit: "The Frizz Ease John Frieda Moisture Barrier Firm Hold Hair Spray ($7) helped us a lot, because, of course, the days are long and we need to keep everyone looking fresh. That really helped keep the hair looking soft and done without being too set."

Frizz Ease John Frieda Moisture Barrier Firm Hold Hair Spray

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