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In season 3 of the Netflix hit series Nobody Wants This, the characters are embarking on new chapters in their lives, and their personal style reflects that shift, according to the show's costume designer, Negar Ali Kline. "With season 3, most of our characters are finding themselves in uncharted territory," Ali Kline said. "They're all in a new landscape."
For the latest episode of The Who What Wear Podcast, Ali Kline sits down with Who What Wear cofounder Hillary Kerr to share what her process is like for bringing the script to life through costume design, how a character arc impacts how they dress on-screen, and more. To read excerpts from the conversation, including a few spoilers, scroll below.
The last time we sat down, we talked a lot about the development of these characters from the perspective of wardrobe. Now that all of our characters are established, what is the process like in season 3? How is it different dressing these characters this time around?
With season 3, most of our characters are finding themselves in uncharted territory. They're all in a new landscape. We have Joanne beginning her conversion [to Judaism] journey. Morgan has a really interesting arc this season, of course, with Esther and Sasha. With Esther, it's truly a complete reinvention. Both of them are finding themselves in a completely new phase of life, so we were hoping that the costumes and the wardrobe will convey that in a subtle way, of course. The season always starts with me reading the scripts. That is our guide through it all.
What is your process like?
I tend to read the episode a few times through, but as I'm reading, of course, I'm visually seeing the scenes come to life. I'm mapping out the pieces that I think that we would need for the season, if you will. … For example, the coat that you see Joanne wearing in episode 4 was something that I knew I wanted her to have, a hero coat for the season.
Another piece that was a very early-on piece that we found that I knew I wanted to make sure that I got in the season was that red trench coat that Morgan wears in New York. Very early on, I know that there are certain pieces that I want to incorporate into their wardrobe, and then it's about finding the right place for those pieces. We have a good understanding of the characters now and who they are and what their style DNA is. But of course, we meet them where they are this season.
I know that you love all of your characters. However, is there one character, in particular, that you were excited to dress this season?
This is a very unique project, in that the characters I'm really able to draw my personal life from, my friends and my family. … Listen, of course, we're always drawing from our personal lives when we're working on a creative project, but in this particular case, it's almost literal sometimes. I think Joanne is a little bit of Erin [Foster]. I think she's a little bit of Jenni [Konner], and she's a bit of me. We joke and say she's like our style baby because it's definitely an amalgamation of that. Yeah, she has a pretty enviable wardrobe.
I also want to talk about Esther, who's on quite a journey of her own as well. I feel like she's experimenting more with clothes this season. Talk to me a little bit about how you approached this iteration of Esther exploring herself.
All the rules with Esther that we had figured out in season 1, we burned it down, right? Like jewel tones of the Roklov [family], colors that we adhered to, everything went out the window because Esther's got a groove back, right? She's finding herself completely in new territory, embarking on a new career. I mean, [it's] basically like Selling Sunset. We wanted to play with those outfits. She's wearing these really chic Stella McCartney blazers but with miniskirts, showing these multimillion-dollar homes, dating now, or she's back on the apps.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.