When approaching a project such as The Queen’s Gambit, where do you start and what’s the biggest challenge?
I read the scripts, then I have an image in my mind, and I start working on that. The biggest challenge is to produce something that achieves what the script demands, mixed with the director’s vision and my own vision. The challenge these days is to also keep everything real and not tampered with in any way by computer work, so you’ve actually got something that looks real.
How important are Beth’s looks to the show’s plot?
They’re essential. She goes from being baby Beth to grown-up Beth. The makeup and hair had to tell that story. They have to age her; to show her becoming more mature; her becoming an alcoholic drug addict. It’s the makeup and hair that you see in all the close ups. If that’s wrong, if it doesn’t move forward correctly, then it won’t work. The costume is just as important. It’s a whole process, especially as the series spans so much time.
In the book, Beth has brown hair, but in the series she is a redhead. Why was it important to make that change?
It came from reading the script. To me, she was always a feisty redhead. The funny thing is that when I met the director, Scott, and said, ‘There is one thing: I think she should be a redhead.’ He said, ‘Absolutely, I agree.’ Then I met Anya and I said, ‘What do you think about Beth being a redhead?’ And she said, ‘What do you mean? Of course she’s a redhead.’ It was quite unusual. Sometimes, you have to fight for these things.
The way the script was written, you really knew how the characters were going to be. But then, of course, you see the cast and you do a U-turn. Mrs Wheatley [Beth’s adoptive mother], for instance, was originally going to be blonde, but she’s a dark brunette and looks fantastic with it. That was a decision I had to make quickly.