A mind-boggling whodunit based on actual events, Ryan Murphy’s The Watcher leaves audiences with burning questions — questions like, “Who was the Watcher?!?” and, “Where can I steal that look?!?” The limited series follows the Brannock family, who purchase their dream home in the picturesque New Jersey suburb of Westfield. Just as Dean (Bobby Cannavale), Nora (Naomi Watts), and their two kiddos, Ellie (Isabel Gravitt) and Carter (Luke David Blumm), settle into their sprawling new estate, they begin receiving ominous letters from someone who says they are “The Watcher” of the home. From that fateful first letter, things start to spiral out of control.
While many fans have been determined to discover the Watcher’s secret identity, others have been more focused on the characters’ fabulous fashions. From Nora and Dean’s wardrobe of cashmere and silks in lush, dreamy neutrals to real estate agent Karen’s (Jennifer Coolidge) Chanel drip, the clothing in The Watcher is a subject all its own — one that complements the show’s themes of picture-perfect facades and what might lurk underneath.
Emmy-winning costume designer Lou Eyrich is the creative force behind the glorious looks. “I, alongside Rudy Mance and Catherine Crabtree, worked as a team to find inspiration, endless sourcing, monochromatic madness, and every color and style of matching his-and-hers tracksuits across the nation,” she tells Tudum.
Eyrich worked with longtime collaborator and The Watcher creator/showrunner Ryan Murphy to ensure each character had their own distinct and instantly recognizable style.
“Lou is somebody that I’ve worked with since 1998,” Murphy tells Tudum. “She’s incredible. What’s been interesting is that she started off as an assistant costumer for me. And now she does all of my work. She also has a producer title on all of my work,” he concludes, which speaks to her work’s place at the heart of Murphy’s storytelling.
Below, Eyrich breaks down the inspiration for each character’s look. And the cast of The Watcher tells Tudum which pieces have become permanent fixtures in their personal wardrobes.
Knits, creams and tennis whites are all central to Nora’s signature aesthetic. “Nora was a ceramicist, an artist,” Eyrich tells Tudum. “Ryan wanted her in monochromatic creams, camels and grays. We searched websites like Net-a-Porter for styles that would work for her.” Those brands include Ralph Lauren, Vince, Anine Bing, Birkenstock, Halston, Totem, Jenni Kayne and J.Crew. Nora’s jewels are a mixture of timeless and modern, with pieces from Gabriela Artigas and Foundrae.
Watts adores the creamy layers and textures. Asked if she kept any favorites, she says, “Actually, yeah, some great cashmere coats.”
Dean is styled to complement and coordinate with Nora. Eyrich explains that he was to appear monied, aspirational, tonal and handsome. However, Cannavale wasn’t sold on the neutral-chic look at first.
“With Naomi and Bobby’s characters, they have to wear a lot of cream in the show,” Murphy explains. “And Bobby was not happy about that. He kept saying, ‘What is with this white cashmere? Why are you doing this to me?’ Because, you know, he’s a dude. And I was like, ‘Trust me; it’s gonna be great.’ And I think it is.”
Cannavale now understands how Nora and Dean’s intense color coordination stems from their desires and aspirations. “We matched a lot in our creams and beiges and earth tones,” he says. “The wardrobe really informed a lot of who these people are, or who they were striving to be, and we had a lot of laughs about that.”
In the end, even Cannavale was won over by the cool grays, including custom suits, shirts and designs by Ralph Lauren, Zegna, Boss, Vince, YSL, Suit Supply and Rag & Bone. “I took a lot of it, yeah,” he says.
An effortlessly cool 16-year-old with a rebellious streak, Ellie is dressed in a mix of vintage pieces and Urban Outfitters. Her style is unbothered but still fashionable.
The Darren Dunn Realty agent sells the Brannocks their new home and happens to also be an old friend of Nora’s. Karen is over the top with some hidden intentions, and Eyrich describes Karen’s wardrobe as country club meets Chanel suits — with a twist.
“We had a lot of her things custom-made,” the costume designer says. “But several of her jackets were H&M. Some of her dresses and skirts were Hervé Léger.”
Coolidge enjoyed unpacking Karen’s style. “I really, really dug that they gave me a lot of input with the wardrobe, and I loved coming up with that stuff because there are some people that really dress for success,” she tells Tudum. “Every move is strategic with their clothing. I felt like that’s who [Karen] is in a nutshell. [She] can’t just go and have something very simple or low-key. She always has to come in and make some kind of statement without trying too hard.”
To call the Brannocks’ neighbors a bit odd would be an understatement. As president of the local preservation society, Pearl is obsessed with the history of 657 Boulevard, while Jasper has the unnerving habit of squeezing himself into the Brannocks’ dumbwaiter.
Eyrich took a long look at Grant Wood’s quirky, austere painting American Gothic for inspiration for the siblings’ wardrobes. There are also nods toward artist Andrew Wyeth’s Helga portraits. “Pearl dresses like she’s stuck in the past — which she is,” the costume designer explains. “Her costumes reflected that.” Many of Pearl’s outfits are vintage, agnès b. and Ralph Lauren’s Western-inspired line, RRL. For his part, Jasper dons Filson.
“We all felt so comfortable as all of our characters, as disparate as we all were,” Farrow tells Tudum.
As the letters intensify, Nora and Dean find that they have very few people to rely on. One of those people is their private investigator, Theodora, who also has some tricks up her sleeves.
Fittingly, given her clandestine career, Theodora’s looks may be deceiving. “Some of the characters are obvious — but Theodora, for example, she keeps you guessing,” Eyrich tells Tudum. “She’s a detective that wears capes, big jewels and gloves. You’re not sure what she’s up to.”
Murphy dreamed up the role specifically for Dumezweni. “I really want you to play something that I’ve always loved, which is a Murder, She Wrote sort of character, like a Jessica Fletcher, but glamorous,” Murphy revealed in a recent roundtable discussion with the cast. “The turban that matches the gloves matches the clothes. And you love that about your part.”
Mo and Mitch are quite literally two peas in a pod, and Eyrich makes sure their matching tracksuits reflect that. Martindale doesn’t quite share Mo’s style, but she kept a tracksuit once filming was complete.
“Well, you had to keep that tracksuit with a little bit of glam to it,” she tells Tudum. “[Mo] wasn’t glamorous at all by the end of this, but there was a fashion statement she tried to make with her tracksuits and shoes. I don’t know what she was doing, honestly, except that that’s what she felt most comfortable in and what she thought was right for neighbors to wear.”
A security specialist hired by the Brannocks as their paranoia sets in, the 19-year-old strikes up a secret romance with Ellie. Though he’s on the job, Dakota doesn’t exactly adhere to a strictly professional dress code.
“Dakota was young, with a startup company — yet he styled his work clothes in a tailored, cool style rather than traditional work wear," Eyrich explains.
