How 'The Craft: Legacy' Costume Designer Was Inspired by the Original '90s Film (Exclusive)

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the craft legacy 1280
Sony Pictures

The sequel's costume designer Avery Plewes breaks down each girl's witching style.

What's it like to dress teen witches in 2020? Costume designer Avery Plewes of The Craft: Legacy, the sequel to the 1996 original, The Craft, reveals to ET how she created iconic fashion moments for a coven of a new generation. 

Plewes, whose work can also be seen in Ready or Not and J.T. Leroy, paid homage to the supernatural cult classic while creating personalized looks for each of the girls in the reboot -- Lily (Cailee Spaeny), Lourdes (Zoey Luna), Frankie (Gideon Adlon) and Tabby (Lovie Simone). 

"I definitely used the original sort of like a blueprint in terms of looking at silhouettes and some of the most iconic pieces and how I could bring inspiration from the pieces to the new one," Plewes tells ET over the phone. 

Many of the trends seen in the '90s original are currently back in style -- something the costume designer kept in mind while putting together the new looks. 

"The girls are supposed to be outsiders and we wanted them to look cool, but a lot of really trendy kids today are actually dressing like they're from the original Craft," Plewes says. "So it felt insincere to the story to actually dress them like the original." 

"You can't reinvent something like that movie. We had to do something new and different, so we decided to design the girls based on the element they represent," she adds. 

'The Craft' (1996) - Columbia Pictures
'The Craft: Legacy' (2020) - Sony Pictures

Read on as Plewes breaks down each girl's style, and browse through ET Style's selection of key clothing and accessories to shop so you can dress like Lily, Frankie, Tabby and Lourdes in real life. 

"It's the first scene I believe where they're discussing their elements, and to me that was such an important part of the script and it's such an important part of witchcraft -- the elements," Plewes explains. "The elements were already assigned to each of the girls on the script, so I sort of researched what the elements represent and also looked at the visual cues that would make sense to a viewer in terms of the elements." 

Sony Pictures

Lily

"Lily is water and I used a lot of pearls and tie-dye and blue within her closet and assigned her the crystal aquamarine. Her silhouette is very '90s because I really wanted to give her that throwback element and pay homage to the original. She also wears a lot of chokers as an homage to Nancy in the original. They just happen to be pearls in this one." 

GET THE LOOK: 

Choker Necklace in Graduating Pearls

Choker Necklace in Graduating Pearls
ASOS

Choker Necklace in Graduating Pearls

Wear Lily's signature accessory with this ASOS pearl choker necklace. 

501 Crop Jeans

501 Crop Jeans
Shopbop

501 Crop Jeans

A pair of Levi's 501 jeans is a major homage to the '90s. 

Frankie

"Frankie is air and so her closet has a lot of stripes in it. It's very chaotic and inconsistent much like air. Purple and white represented air and amethyst was the crystal we assigned her and there's also the use of fringe on one of her costumes that represents air. We decided to stay away from a lot of jewelry for her just because it felt too complex in contrast to how chaotic her closet is." 

GET THE LOOK:

In It to Fringe It Oversized Denim Jacket

In It to Fringe It Oversized Denim Jacket
Nasty Gal

In It to Fringe It Oversized Denim Jacket

A fringe jacket, available on Nasty Gal, to represent Frankie's element, air. 

Regularly $95

$47.50 at Nasty Gal

Mock-Neck Sweater

Mock-Neck Sweater
Old Navy

Mock-Neck Sweater

An Old Navy mock-neck sweater featuring stripes. 

Regularly $29.99

$22 at Old Navy

Pop Icon Iridescent Skirt

Pop Icon Iridescent Skirt
Dolls Kill

Pop Icon Iridescent Skirt

This iridescent purple mini skirt from Dolls Kill resembles the color of amethyst. 

Sony Pictures

Tabby

"Tabby is fire, so we did a lot of color-blocking and her main color is orange. Her crystal is sunstone. Sunstone is a flame motif. You'll see a couple times throughout the film flames and copper jewelry, and I wanted her to feel really adorned. Tabby's character is sort of the most captain in that regard and so I wanted her to feel always adorned for practicing magic. Also, she's a gamer so a lot of her silhouette is based on powerful women in video games, like the cargo pants kind of vibe. And then the corset in the party scene is kind of a nod to that."

GET THE LOOK:

Julie Top

Julie Top
Revolve

Julie Top

An edgy ribbed tank with cut-out detail in a fiery orange shade, available on Revolve.

Stone Co Ord Top Stitch Utility Pants

Stone Co Ord Top Stitch Utility Pants
Missguided

Stone Co Ord Top Stitch Utility Pants

Cargo pants are a staple for Tabby, like this Missguided pair. 

Regularly $54

$27 at Missguided

Filigree & Serpentine Necklace Set

Filigree & Serpentine Necklace Set
Forever 21

Filigree & Serpentine Necklace Set

Finish off the outfit with this Forever 21 two-piece necklace set. 

Lourdes

"Lourdes is earth and her main color is green. We used a lot of plaid and velvet. Plaid representing the highlands and velvet is kind of like moss. Her crystal is malachite. That was the base point for them, and Lourdes also wears a lot of patent leather jackets, which was also a nod to the original."

GET THE LOOK:

Vegan Leather Belted Drop Shoulder Jacket

Vegan Leather Belted Drop Shoulder Jacket
Express

Vegan Leather Belted Drop Shoulder Jacket

Score this Express vegan leather jacket to channel Lourdes' style. 

Regularly $148

$88.80 at Express

Short Slit-Hem Skirt

Short Slit-Hem Skirt
H&M

Short Slit-Hem Skirt

This H&M plaid mini skirt is perfect for this look.

Editor's note: The interview was edited for length and clarity.

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