Spoilers for season three of The Great ahead.
Being the new kid is never easy, but being the new kid who needs to design historically accurate yet uniquely modern 18th century Russian costumes for an already hit show can understandably feel like an almost impossible task. That was the predicament Sharon Long, costume designer of Hulu’s The Great, found herself in when she joined production at the start of season two. “You never know how you’re going to be received,” she tells W. “You’re walking into something where everybody knows each other and you don’t.”
But Long was up for the task and, now, after two seasons on the Emmy-nominated show, she fancies herself a bit of an expert on the niche topic of Russian court dressing, and also the ability to balance authenticity with Tony McNamara’s exceptionally modern script. Eighteenth century corsets weren’t made for dancing, badminton, and ravenous sex—acts depicted in almost every episode of the series. “You have to allow the actors to express the character in the script,” she says. “And so that means that everybody has to be able to move very easily.”
Long’s success in the endeavor has earned her not only an Emmy for herself, but also a new client in the show’s star. Last year, Long designed the old Hollywood-style dress Fanning wore to the Emmy Awards when the actress was nominated for her turn as the titular (Catherine) The Great. “I really admire that she wanted to draw attention to costume designers,” Long says of Fanning. But while it was fun to see her work on the red carpet for the first time, Long isn’t eager to recreate the moment. “It was really nerve wracking,” she recalls. “I definitely had a couple of sleepless nights about it. I had to give the dress to Elle and she took it on the plane. I couldn’t be there to make sure it looked right, which in the end it did, thanks to her fantastic stylist. But I don’t know if I could ever do that again.”
Luckily, Long has…
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