Costume Designer Christine Wada Dishes On Richard E. Grant's Classic Loki Outfit - Exclusive
Though the appearance of the so-called Classic Loki on the Disney+ series "Loki" was brief — and he was only one of many Lokis, at that — few characters generated more discussion. Played by Richard E. Grant, Classic Loki is named as such because he wears the original Loki costume from the comics, as designed by Jack Kirby in the sixties — eons before Tom Hiddleston was on anyone's radar.
Over the course of the episode "Journey Into Mystery," audiences learn that Classic Loki is not just a Loki With A Different Feature (I.E., Alligator Loki or the female Loki named Sylvie). He is, in fact, a Loki who once dodged death at the hands of Thanos, and lived in isolation for eons before the TVA found him. He's the most exhausted of all the Lokis, as a result, but also perhaps the most introspective. However, while the part was well-written, and Grant's performance well-received, much of the internet hubbub came back to the costume.
Looper was recently in a unique position to ask about that very costume, in an exclusive interview with "Loki" costume designer Christine Wada, and here's what we found out.
Classic Loki was created via "An amazing textile department"
During Looper's discussion with "Loki" costume designer Christine Wada, we took time to ask about Classic Loki — specifically, how she constructed the iconic look from the comics, how she got it looking so aged, and how she made it fit in with the Void. She started with the obvious point: they referenced "those early [comics]" when designing the costume, indicating that they were more inspired by runs than specific issues.
When asked how she made the Classic Loki costume so dirty, Wada laughed and said "An amazing textile department. Some of the fabric actually was vintage just because I really wanted to have that 1950s comic series vibe. So the fabric is vintage fabric, but then we went in and did some textile art to it, to not have it look sad and pathetic, but to have it look just like he had been sitting in there forever, which I hope came across."
All six episodes of "Loki" Season 1 are now streaming on Disney+.