It feels like forever ago that Oscar Isaac‘s passion project, Moon Knight, was released on Disney+. The series took a deep look at the character’s Egyptian ties and what it’s like living with DID; not letting the superheroic aspect of the character overshadow the topics it explores. The project also gave costume designer Meghan Kasperlik a curious challenge with a hero that is mostly covered in white cloth.
She got a chance to sit down alongside Isaac to discuss how she tackled the project. She highlights that Egyptian director Mohamed Diab wanted to keep the characters grounded, which she took into the design. Not only that, she even added that she hid a few interesting details in the clothing. In addition to the expected Egyptian symbols, she also wanted to give Isaac‘s Guatemalan heritage a callout with some hidden Mayan symbolism.
Oscar Isaac also reflected on how important these details are, especially when you “pour your heart” into a passion project like this, as he highlights with the following quote:
You kind of pour your heart into the things that you do just for the sake of doing it — not even for the result. You put that stuff in there out of a sense of play, and a sense of fun and excitement because it means something to you, and whether that shows up literally on camera is kind of beside the point.
Oscar Isaac
He adds the importance of why they add detail and texture to these heroic costumes; a counterpoint to many that complain about Marvel Cinematic Universes’ attention to detail in its costumes which is criticized as being “overdesigned.”
I think the idea is that it infuses depth. You just feel the depth of it. All the detail, all the texture, all of that stuff, someone in a rush — which you definitely were always in — you could kind of let that stuff fall to the side, especially when you have six hours of show to make, which is always just so wild. And to still find the space and the interest to infuse everything you could with some sort of meaning, it’s just so great.
Oscar Isaac
It definitely is an important touch, and the way design is adapted into live-action requires different elements and more. You want to make the costume pop, the complexity which is highlighted in Mr. Knight’s design. In the comics, a straightforward white suit would just not translate as well to live-action as many wished it would. So, they add personal touches to make these designs stand out from their comic predecessors.
Source: Deadline
