It’s official: our favourite dark spy thriller with its obsessive, globe-trotting non-couple couple is back
BY SOPHIE PERRY. IMAGE SID GENTLE/BBC
Between all of Killing Eve’s murders, espionage and not-so-subtle queer moments the show is also an absolute tour de force in fashion. Through the daring but playful costume design of Phoebe de Gaye (season one), Charlotte Mitchell (season two) and Sam Perry (season three), the show has launched the character of Villanelle as a style icon.
Forget catsuits and six-inch leather boots, Killing Eve continually redefines what a female assassin wears when she is out on a mission. Think: tailored suits, Burberry trench coats and patterned sundresses.
Villanelle’s fashion is not just for aesthetics though. It helps her change persona and hints at sub-plots, in a way her fashion choices are just as important to the story as the people she kills. So, as season three kicks off, let’s take a look at Villanelle’s best outfits…
The dress that started it all
Way back in the first season Villanelle donned a pink tulle dress by British designer Molly Goddard in a meeting with her psychiatrist. All over the fashion world it was heralded as a “fashion moment” and similar dresses subsequently appeared on the red carpet. The outfit is subversive, flamboyant and feminine with a razor-sharp edge – a sign of things to come…
We love a classy assassin
If you are going to stalk your lovers’ husband all the way to Oxford just to threaten him then you have to look the preppy-professor part, don’t you? This outfit certainly has some Annie Hall inspiration to it.
Off to the races
We love a power-suit. This racehorse print Chloé blazer sums up Villanelle’s character perfectly; a stylish mix of power and playfulness, edges and softness.
Pretty in pink
In a trip to Amsterdam Villanelle is positioned picture-perfect next to the river in this pink ensemble. So aesthetic is this high-end look that it attracts the attention of a blogger who asks if she can take a photo of the assassin for her Instagram.
“No. No, of course not. Don’t be pathetic.” Villanelle replies coldly, ever tactful. Much like flamboyant tulle dress this outfit is over-the-top in all the best ways.
Boho chic
Villanelle is an unapologetically queer character and this outfit is perhaps the most-queer looking of them all. In what looks like a high-end mix between Professor Trelawney and the art teacher you fancied in year 9, the outfit highlights how easily Villanelle can transform into an entirely new persona. Not only that but we know at least one queer woman who dresses like this – and she is probably into astrology and lives in Clerkenwell.
RIP
When Eve (spoiler alert!) puts a hit out on herself to get Villanelle’s attention, the assassin turns up to her home in full-on funeral mode. Including a huge – but delicate – fascinator. Villanelle is all about the drama and impact that her outfits can have and this mourning attire is enough to give the Woman In Black a run for her money…
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