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On HBO’s “The Idol,” star Lily-Rose Depp’s makeup gets as messy as the show’s headline-making (and highly controversial) sex scenes.
And to hear makeup department head Kirsten Coleman tell it, that’s precisely the point.
“It was really fun in this show to let things get messy … to let things kind of smear a little bit when it’s hot and steamy,” Coleman, who previously worked with showrunner Sam Levinson on “Euphoria,” tells Pvnew Style.
Depp, 24, portrays Jocelyn, a troubled pop star who’s reeling from the recent death of her mother when she falls into the clutches of creepy cult leader Tedros (played by Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye).
And Coleman says she wanted the character’s performance looks to be an “ode” to two pop chart-toppers who weathered their own storms in the early 2000s: Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
The latter’s scandalous “Dirrty” visuals were a key reference for an Episode 2 scene in which Depp’s character shoots a similarly racy music video; pushed to her breaking point after countless takes, a sobbing Jocelyn eventually hobbles off the set with her graphic, glittery winged eyeliner running down her face.
Coleman says the look’s “hard lines” and “edges and points” were meant to “reflect how hard her life is in that moment,” adding that she was “intentional” in selecting products that wouldn’t hold up to tears and sweat.
“I knew she was going to cry and break down, and I wanted to see it start breaking down in the scene,” she explains, telling us she had to redo the look countless times over the course of the three days it took to nail the sequence.
“I think we were all having the realistic experience of what it would be to shoot a music video with a pop star really breaking down like that.”
But Jocelyn’s stage glam — heavy on the false lashes, hot pink hair extensions and “Euphoria”-worthy eyes — couldn’t be more different from the sultry, smudgy cat eye, overdrawn nude lip and heavy blush she sports while off the clock.
“For her everyday look, I referenced steamy 1980s movies like “9 1/2 Weeks,” “Basic Instinct” and “Fatal Attraction,” Coleman says.
“I have this vision that she and her mom watched those movies when she was young, so her character’s like, ‘This is what my mom thinks is a beautiful woman.’ Always looking for that approval.”
These femme fatale references not only reflect Jocelyn’s obvious sexual confidence, but also, perhaps, the performer she’d like to become.
“When she’s ‘performance Jocelyn’ … all this stuff is put on top of her to sort of create this illusion of a person that everyone wants her to be. And then when she’s ‘everyday Jocelyn,’ she’s completely stripped down,” Coleman says.
“You see these two competing versions of her in the show that represent her internal struggle. Which one is the real Jocelyn … and is it either of them?”
Perhaps viewers will find out during next Sunday’s finale, with the beauty pro teasing more major makeup moments still to come.
“She’s learning who she really is as an artist, who she wants to be as a musician and a singer, and I think Tedros is kind of bringing that out of her, and with that comes how she presents herself,” Coleman hints.
“As she’s starting to dig into herself, you’re seeing more depth and dimension with her makeup.”
Below, shop some of the key products Coleman used to bring Jocelyn’s beauty looks to life:
Chanel Calligraphie De Chanel Longwear Intense Cream Eyeliner ($35)
“My favorite black eyeliner, hands down,” Coleman raves of this gel formula, which she used for both Jocelyn’s album photoshoot in Episode 1 and her music video look in Episode 2.
Chanel Le Crayon Lèvres Longwear Lip Pencil in Pivoine ($32)
Coleman loves the “really natural” look of this pencil, telling us, “We would overdraw [Jocelyn’s] lips to make it a little ’90s, which is kinda her style, but we would connect the Cupid’s bow to give it a sultry Old Hollywood vibe.”
Chanel No. 1 De Chanel Lip and Cheek Balm in Berry Boost ($45)
Coleman likes the “natural flush” this multipurpose balm delivers, saying, “It’s very sexy and leaves a sheen.”
Chanel Le Crayon Khôl Intense Eye Pencil in Ambre ($32)
“There’s a lot of really exact, perfect eyeliner shapes [out there] and I love it — it’s one of my favorite things to do — but it was really fun in this show to just let things get messy,” Coleman says of Jocelyn’s frequently smudged cat eye, often created with this pencil.
