Makeup can literally make—or break—a movie. Think of Heath Ledger's weathered Joker mask in The Dark Night or Charlize Theron's full face of Megyn Kelly in Bombshell. The proper cosmetics render the make-believe of it all a bit less obvious—or extremely so, if that's the metacommentary of it all.
As awards season barrels in, we've been taking a look back at the standout beauty moments from the year's most cult films. Anora's lace-up tattoos, Wicked's symphony in green hues, and MaXXXine's signature eye shadows—you saw them on screen before they trickled through the beauty pipeline to makeup kits everywhere.
For more on exactly how these looks came together, and which products you can use to recreate them, our beauty editor sat down with the makeup artists behind them for a peek at their palettes.
Annie Johnson, lead makeup artist on Anora
Danessa Myricks-Blurring Balm Powder in Universal: “I am a huge fan of this product. You can use it under or over makeup. This product balances oils and maintains hydration, which was essential during shooting, because we were filming in the middle of winter in some especially cold exterior shots. I wanted to keep Mikey [Madison, who plays Anora]’s skin as healthy and hydrated as possible.”
Face Atelier Ultra Foundation Pro: “This is one of my go-to foundations. It is silicone-based and leaves a dewy natural finish and looks absolutely amazing on camera. I used this very sparingly on Mikey; her skin is phenomenal and I wanted her natural skin to show through on film.”
Lancôme Teint Idole All Over Concealer and Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer: “I really love these two concealers. They are super blendable and natural. I used these sparingly as well.”
Danessa Myricks Colorfix Mattes in Latte: “Danessa Myricks has some extremely artist-friendly products. I love this one because it lasts and can be mixed with other shades. It’s really versatile! I used this one on her cheeks, lips, anywhere we wanted some flush or a pop of color.”
Chanel LES BEIGES Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream in Soleil Tan Bronze: “I wanted [Madison's character] Ani’s makeup to be a bit more elevated during the 'girlfriend experience' look. We added more bronzer and contour in those scenes. You can never go wrong with Chanel!”
Danessa Myricks Colorfix Mattes in Blackout: “I used a couple of different products to create Ani’s winged eyeliner look. This one was key in making it long-lasting. I would sometimes use this in combination with the M.A.C. paint pots.”
Makeup By Mario Ultra Suede Lip Pencil in Almond: “Mikey and I decided on this shade during the camera test! We tried a few, and this one just looked so beautiful. I love that she has a signature lip color throughout the film.”
Fenty Diamond Bomb All-Over Diamond Veil in How Many Carats?!: “The glitter bomb looked phenomenal on film. The product itself is buildable and I had a fun time working with it. I layered it on her eyes, cheeks, and even mixed it in with her lip gloss in certain scenes!”
Ani’s Iconic Back-of-Leg Bow Tats: “A New York-based tattoo artist actually drew these up for me—his name is Sean Huang. He did a fantastic job. I sent the drawing over to Tinsley Transfers in LA to get hundreds of the transfers printed out, because I knew we would be going through a lot of them! They did a rush order and got them to me the day before we started shooting, I can’t thank them enough.”
Ardell Demi Whispies: “These lashes were essential in completing Ani’s look. You can find Ardell lashes in any drugstore and they’re a staple in my kit. I had customized the Demi Whispies and cut them down about 1/4-inch to size them to Mikey’s eyes. We went through so many fake lashes throughout shooting. Sometimes after a long shoot day I would go home and find them stuck to my clothing.”
Frances Hannon, hair and makeup designer on Wicked
“I started prep for Wicked by designing the green for Elphaba. Elphaba’s look required a custom green skin tone, a critical aspect of her character. I researched and tested many green products on the market. After multiple trials, we found a combination of products that created the right shade of green to which I then added a neon undertone. It was airbrushed for smoothness and then I added freckles, more prominent for younger versions of Elphaba and softer as she aged. Her look further involved contouring to enhance depth and shape.”
Maekup by David Stoneman Elphaba Green Base Coat and Maekup by David Stoneman Elphaba Inkz Top Coat: “I have worked with David Stoneman many times over the years across many different films. These are two bespoke products made for Elphaba: a base coat and a top coat. After initial research and trials with models with Cynthia’s skintone, I decided a custom-made product would need to be created to ensure we had the right color. With David, we trialed my green with different mediums—Isododecaine, a slow-drying solvent made from coconut, and Isoamylavirate, which stays wet-looking and gives a luxurious skin feel.”
Neon-green makeup: “Finding the correct bespoke shade of green was only one aspect. Making the perfect green tone that worked in every lighting situation was proving to be the most challenging. We tried everything—olives, greens, blues, yellows, whites with iridescents, pearlescents and opalescent. The revelation moment came when I discovered a discontinued neon-based cream that gave the reflective quality required for Elphaba’s green skin to look real in different lighting setups. This was the key in making Elphaba’s green skin look and feel real on camera.”
Green glazing gel: “Added contouring and highlighting when Elphaba’s makeup required and to enhance depth and shape.”
Elphaba’s green lipstick: “Elphaba’s green lips were a combination of many different products. Her lip colour and contoured makeup gave depth and balance to her green skin. The lip color and density depended on where the character's progression is in the story.”
Chartreuse-green textured makeup: “To enhance depth and shape, a mixture of body paints was used for additional contouring and highlighting.”
Sarah Rubano, lead makeup artist, MaXXXine
Skin Illustrator airbrush ink and Freckles Single Color Pot: “To create her freckles, I airbrushed a freckle brown Skin Illustrator airbrush ink through a custom vaquform stencil, and used the Freckles Single Color Pot for touch-ups.”
Gunmetal gray eyeshadow: To create Maxine [played by Mia Goth]’s "sleek, sexy, dangerous" smoky eye, Rubano swept Urban Decay Naked2 Frisk as a base, Sephora About Last Night to define the crease and outer corners and Antonym Slate to darken lids. To finish, Rubano brightened inner corners up to the browbone with Antonym Ice.
Maxine's iconic light-blue eyeshadow from X, for context: To create the “retro/classic ‘X’ baby-blue eyeshadow” from MaXXXine prequel X, Rubano blended two (now discontinued) shades of blue, Stila Liquid Eye Shadow in Something Blue with Morphe Matte Blue, in a 95/5 ratio.
Dior Addict Lipstick in Superstar and Smashbox Gloss Angeles: To create Maxine's "glossy luster" pout with a "glass-like" finish, Rubano swiped Goth's lips with Dior's Superstar shade and finished with Smashbox's extra shine gloss for a "punchy pop."
MaXXXine x Half Magic Set: Post-production, Rubano reworked her custom creations into three pre-mixed versions. “Half Magic cosmetics and I built a MaXXXine makeup collection that was released when the film premiered. We developed and formulated this palette together.”
