‘The Remarried Empress’ Features More Than 70 Costume Changes for Its Titular Queen

With more than 70 costumes for its leading lady alone, costume designer Chae Kyunghwa created a lavish wardrobe that charts the shifting balance of power between the women at the heart of Hulu's new fantasy series.

There are few things an empress needs more than a good wardrobe. In Hulu's new Korean fantasy series, “The Remarried Empress,” Navier (Shin Mina) has one fit for a woman of her standing: layers of sumptuous silk, intricate embellishments, sparkling jewels, and a look designed for every occasion—big and small. Across the show's 10 episodes, the Eastern Empire's leading lady wears upwards of 70 costumes. “She changes four or five times in a single day,” costume designer Chae Kyunghwa says, “and the concept is that there is almost no repetition.”

Based on the hugely popular webtoon of the same name, “The Remarried Empress” follows Navier, a beloved ruler whose seemingly perfect marriage to Emperor Sovieshu (Ju Jihoon) is upended when he falls for a runaway slave. Navier refuses to let her husband's betrayal define her and embarks on a new romance of her own.

For Chae, whose credits include “Pachinko,” dressing an empress meant communicating not only Navier's individual taste but also the considerable wealth and authority of the empire she represents. “The empress as a fashionista,” she says. “She is styled lavishly to convey that the Eastern Empire is a rich and powerful nation, using crystal and other glittering embellishments, and multiple layers of silk.” Cape-based silhouettes feature prominently, along with a rotation of hairstyles, jewellery, and crowns to complete each look. 

Almost all of Shin’s costumes, like the costumes of the other main actors, were custom-made in-house by Chae and her team. “Lace and ornamentation are attached one by one, drawing on Korea’s outstanding handcraft, and some dresses took months to make,” Chae explains. “In many cases, the actual pieces are more splendid than they appear on screen.”

If Navier's wardrobe is designed to communicate the authority of someone born into power, Runaway slave Rashta's (Lee Seyoung) offers a rather different story. When she first enters the palace, she is an outsider, unfamiliar with the customs and expectations of imperial life. Her sudden proximity to wealth brings with it a new world of beautiful clothes, jewellery and accessories, and her evolving appearance becomes part of her attempt to find a place within it. “She contrasts with the empress in costume, personality and even movement,” Chae explains. “As the story progresses, she gradually imitates the empress’s style."