Entertainment

You Have To See The 'I, Tonya' Cast Transform Back Into The '90s

by Danielle Burgos
Neon

There's plenty of hair and makeup tutorials on how to get that '90s look, but the new movie I, Tonya takes it to the next level. Telling the story of figure skater Tonya Harding's difficult ascent to the top of her sport, and culminating in the infamous attack on skater Nancy Kerrigan before the 1994 Olympics, the film offers Harding's hindsight view of everything that led up to the bizarre scandal. The time period is practically its own character in the film, with loving attention to detail and costume. And with every actor committing 100 percent to their roles, you need to see what the I, Tonya cast looks like in real life, since they're unrecognizable in the film.

Between hair, makeup, and even full-body prosthetics, the transformation of Margot Robbie into Harding is the most dramatic, but the others are pretty huge, too. We'll start with one of the less intense transformations — former Winter Soldier Sebastian Stan morphing into Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly. It's amazing what a little hair can accomplish; by slicking his normally neatly parted 'do straight back for a look that says "business to club" and adding a mustache, all Stan needed to complete the Gillooly look was a turtleneck. As to whether that mustache was real, Stan's playing coy. When asked by Buzzfeed whether or not the fuzz was his, Stan would only confirm he had a mustache for part of the time. Why so secretive?! The one thing Stan did confirm was Gillooly's feelings about his looks. In the same Buzzfeed interview Stan notes, "[Jeff Giloolly] wrote to me and he said, 'You might have actually made that mustache look cool for once."

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Though Allison Janney can't change her face structure to match that of Harding's tough mother LaVona Golden, she comes darn close with just a wig and the right pair of oversized maroon glasses. If you're wondering whether the filmmakers tried to paint Golden as meaner than she was in real life with that particularly severe bowl cut, it's actually pretty true to live. Janney's star wattage isn't dimmed by a thinned lip outline or '70s eyeshadow; despite hewing closely to Golden's simultaneously dull and overdramatic wardrobe, her portrayal of Golden is already stealing the show for many critics.

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Caitlin Carver's thick, dark eyebrows and bright smile already made her a double for ice princess and judge's favorite, Nancy Kerrigan. Kerrigan was exactly the image of what ice-skating judges thought a champion should look like, elegant in Vera Wang designs, while Harding, with her bright hand-sewn costumes, was looked down upon by the media and judges. no matter that she was one of only two women at the time to complete a triple axel. Though Carver's face is more heart-shaped, that's nothing a little reverse-highlighting couldn't take care of. And though the actor normally wears her shiny brunette hair parted center and flat, all it takes is a little volume and a '90s ponytail topped with a scrunchie to completely change her look.

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As for Robbie, the majority of her transformation was hiding the fact she looks like, well, Robbie. According to a detailed account of the entire makeup process in Vogue, Robbie spent one to three hours a day just having her face made up. That included using reverse highlighting for a rounder shape, lightening and brushing her eyebrows to give them a wilder and more '90s shape, and using adhesive glue to make her eyes smaller and lower. As Harding ages through the movie, prosthetics were added to her nose, chin and cheeks, and she wore a wraparound body prosthetic to mimic weight gain.

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The image below shows the entire cast at the film's premiere. With tailored modern outfits and the latest hair and makeup, they look a world away from the film they brought to life.

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But since so much of a performance is timing, movement, and how they hold their bodies, for the full transformation, you'll have to catch I, Tonya in theaters when it opens on Dec. 8, 2017.