Tag: Costume Design

David Fincher “did not want him to look cool at all, like a typical assassin,” explains Cate Adams.

Esther Zuckerman
November 30, 2023
The Hollywood Reporter

At the opening of David Fincher’s The Killer, Michael Fassbender’s unnamed assassin describes his look as based on a German tourist he saw in London. It’s a convenient disguise for blending in on the streets of Paris because, as he explains, no one wants to interact with a German tourist. But what does that look like off the page? That task fell to costume designer Cate Adams, working with the exacting director. “David had a lot of ideas about how he wanted him to look,” she says. “He did not want him to look cool at all, like a typical assassin.” The solution? Bucket hats, Skechers and “lazy people clothing.” 

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Kelle Long
November 14, 2023
The Credits (MPA)

The coldest assassin is the kind you don’t see coming. In a lineup of globe-trotting sharpshooters from the movies, The Killer (Michael Fassbender) may be the most difficult to identify. On a crowded city street, he could be anyone—and that is by design. Costume designer Cate Adams developed the style for director David Fincher’s vision of a dangerous character you would hardly ever notice.

“Basically, he wears clothes that he can just find anywhere. Find in an airport, find in a convenience store. He doesn’t want to have to think about it,” she noted. “[Fincher] wanted a bucket hat instead of an umbrella to be water resistant for any kind of weather he was going to be in. He wanted a ‘lazy people notion.’ So, zippers or velcros or something pullover. Dad chinos. Anything he could have bought from an airport.” 

That mindset even extends to modern conveniences. Sometimes, the easiest way to shop today is with online delivery, and The Killer could plausibly wear pieces he purchased with the click of a button.

“One of the shirts he wears is a printed, short-sleeved Aloha shirt that was actually from Amazon. So, there are some pieces from Amazon,” Adams revealed. “It’s just very basic. Whatever he could find easily. He doesn’t take a lot of time to think about his clothes, which I really liked. He’s not in suits like James Bond. He just kind of looks weird, and you’re not really sure what he’s doing there. He just kind of looks normal and blends in.”

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