Law Rosch & Zendaya : The Art of Method Dressing
- BY NOMTHA QENGWA
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
A movie's story no longer ends when the actors leave the set, Law Roach and Zendaya are two people who have turned the red carpet into an extension of the film itself. They have been able to use fashion as a visual reference of the characters Zendaya plays. Instead of treating a premiere as simply an opportunity to wear a beautiful designer gown, the outfits they cultivate become a part of the storytelling. Law has described their approach as making the clothes an “extension of the wardrobe from the movie”. Instead of “Zendaya is wearing a nice dress to the Dune premiere”, it becomes “what would Chani, or the world of Dune look like translated into fashion”.
Method dressing itself is the art of dressing in a way that references the character in the film. Not to be confused with costume dressing, which is directly dressing like the character in the film, however method dressing is translating the character or of the film into fashion. Law and Zendaya’s press tour looks for the movie Challengers is an amazing example of method dressing. From the colours used in each look relating back to the colour scheme of the movie, to Zendaya dying her hair in honey blond, to the subtle tennis references in each look.
Glenn Close in 101 Dalmations (1996) as Cruelle Movie Premier | Greena Davis in A League of Their Own as Dottie Hinson (1992) Movie Premier
Even though Law and Zendaya have become the synonymous face of method dressing, the art existed way before them and this is something that law acknowledges. Being adamant on the fact that they did not invent method dressing. Law has mentioned that his own references for initially trying out method dressing are Glenn Close in 101 Dalmations (1996) as Cruelle, and Greena Davis in A League of Their Own as Dottie Hinson (1992).
The difference between how these actors did it and Zendaya & Law is the scale and consistency. Zendaya and Law have made method dressing their staple when it comes to press tour looks and social media has amplified the reach of these looks. Everyone can see them. They have made the premiere and styling another form of marketing for the movie
Zendaya a Law’s relationship dates back all the way to 2011 when Zendaya was still a Disney star filming Shake it Up. Law didn’t come into Zendaya’s career when she was an already established icon, he was there before all the glitz and glamour, they grew together. Law has explained that when she was a Disney star, designer brands were not particularly interested in lending her clothes, he used vintage pieces to style her.
Law learned how to cultivate an image without having access to the big brands, being resourceful and eventually successful. Law has remained adamant on the fact that if designers said no in the past it would be a NO forever or until they felt they could work with the brand, he has remained consistent with this till today.
There isn’t a set date on when they started testing out method dressing, but one of the earliest examples of the implementation of the art was during The Greatest Showman press tour, where Zendaya played as Anne Wheeler a trapeze artist, and law incorporated references from the film into Zendaya’s premiere looks. During Spider-Man: No Way Home, Law and Zendaya pushed the concept further, they incorporated spider and web references into her wardrobe. This shows the idea of method dressing existed between them before it became the major celebrity fashion phenomenon it is today.
It was when Dune came that really changed everything. This is when the approach became extremely sophisticated. During Dune , Law and Zendaya didn’t simply reference science fiction, they explored Chani ( Zendaya’s character ) and the world of Arrakis. During the 2021 Venice premiere of the film Zendaya sported a custom Balmain gown that was created from a mould of her body, designed to resemble wet sand.
Dune: Part Two took the idea even further, Law explicitly said “We adopted method dressing” the looks referenced not just the previous concepts but also futurism and science fiction. And then came the look that practically became the defining image of the campaign, the Mugler Robot Suit Zendaya wore Thierry Mugler’s 1995 “circulaire” cyborg suit at the London premiere. She wore a piece of fashion history and it broke social media.
Today their method dressing approach didn’t stop with Dune or The Challengers, Zendaya’s new film, The Odyssey, moved into Greek mythology and the visual language of the Character Athena. The looks explored Grecian draping, goddess references, white/cream palette, and flowing and ethereal styling. Recent coverage has described her Odyssey wardrobe as paying homage to her goddess râle through Grecian inspired looks from houses including Jacquemus and Schiaparelli.
Law and Zendaya’s evolution with method dressing is spectacular. Each time the complexity of the styling increases, they are able to build entire fashion narratives around each film. Law has shown that he doesn’t think like a stylist but like a fashion architect, he understands the importance of storytelling, the use of shapes, textures, fabrics, movement and design in fashion, and he uses that understanding to cultivate or build upon worlds.
Zendaya brings her understanding of the characters she plays, and her personal taste, Law writes the initial script and Zendaya helps rewrite it. Their relationship and collaboration is what makes each look so special. They have transformed the red carpet from a promotional stop into another stage for performance. They understand world building and how fashion is an extension of the set world.
