Why “Bridgerton” won’t start a craze for corsets

By Luke Leitch

Do you remember Joe Exotic? Way back in March 2020, as coronavirus took hold across the world, a Netflix true-crime documentary called “Tiger King” emerged as the first TV obsession of the pandemic. We watched agog as the mullet-coiffed zoo-owner Exotic (which is not, you may be astonished to hear, his real name) wrestled both his wildlife and his personal problems with a cavalier lack of caution matched only by his outrageous outfits. Within days online searches for “Joe Exotic shirts” were returning satisfyingly trashy sequined animal prints. Fashion critics wrote articles analysing Exotic’s “style”. Even trucker caps seemed due a comeback.

Sitting in the same sunken spot on my sofa many months later, in yet another iteration of lockdown, I feel as if “Tiger King” was my last distinct antediluvian televisual memory before a year saturated by “content” (my real life, by contrast, had little content of note during this time). My watching sprees, which though fleeting were briefly all-consuming, included series four of “The Crown” and the monochrome Icelandic hues of “The Valhalla Murders”. After these, in a desperate desire for technicolour, I engaged in a start-to-finish re-watch of “Arrested Development”.

At the behest of my kids I signed up to Disney+ to watch “The Mandalorian” (immense), then we worked our way through the Marvel Universe films in chronological order (immensely tiring). There was “A Suitable Boy” (could have been longer) and the satisfyingly slow reboot of “Perry Mason” (oh, that hat). And these are just the shows I can remember.

The rocketing share prices of streaming services suggests I wasn’t the only viewer whose occasional binge-watching sessions blossomed into multi-episodic daily benders. There has never been a better time to shelter from existential dread via the Regency kitsch and puffed sleeves of “Bridgerton”. If not now, when?

Once upon a time in Hollywood, films influenced what we wore. Ralph Lauren styled the look of “Annie Hall” (1977) and showed menswear could be womenswear, “American Gigolo” (1980) kickstarted the rise of Giorgio Armani and “Risky Business” (1983) sparked a run on Ray-Ban Wayfarers. Perhaps most memorably, “Flashdance” made unitards and leg-warmers the uniform of the 1980s. Cinematic beauty inspired us all.

I expected this to continue. Starved of social interaction – and with so many platforms to seek solace in – I’ve been waiting to see which of the glorious clothes I’ve seen on-screen might translate into real-life trends. Last year’s televisual delights delivered many compelling candidates, starting with those eye-melting shirts worn by Mr Exotic. Other prime picks included the vintage streetwear pieces older than the teenagers who wore them in “We Are Who We Are”, the sexy tailoring of the trading-floor interns in “Industry”, the delirious, fairy-tale fashion of “Emily in Paris” and the chess-board prints and elaborate collars of “The Queen’s Gambit”.

Once upon a time in Hollywood, films influenced what we wore

All these shows inspired members of the fashion press into effusive praise for the styling (admittedly they haven’t had much else to swoon about in the way of catwalk or streetwear trends). Yet none appears to have nudged the rudder of fashion. Exotic’s shirts were so retina-burning that in a typical year they might have stayed imprinted on the fashion consciousness for several months, and even been reflected in a few menswear collections. Yet by April, Exotic no longer seemed exotic anymore. Most normal people had moved on to “Normal People”.

This lack of sartorial influence is an unintended consequence of bingeing on an endless stream of shows: the more we watch, the less we see. Binge-watching has proved to be a panacea for the purgatory of housebound lockdown. It has also reduced the real-life influence that a brilliantly designed show or film can inspire.

The restoration of the screen’s hold over fashion will serve as a test of whether life is getting back to normal. Will the sand-coloured suit by Massimo Alba that stars in the much-delayed new James Bond flick turn us all into corduroy-wearing action men? Judging by the early days of 2021, that isn’t very likely. This isn’t shaping up to be a normal year either. Rather than lingering on Bond-wear, we will probably switch over to the tank tops of “Fast & Furious 9” instead. Time to settle in for another year of costume drama.■

ILLUSTRATIONS: EWELINA KARPOWIAK