Zendaya. Everyone knows the name, everyone knows the face and everyone knows the looks served. But who is behind all of that? Who chooses what outfits she wears (and slays) for each event? 

Law Roach.

Zendaya and Law Roach have been working together since her time on Disney Channel. Their working relationship has developed and evolved over the years and their loyalty to each other has allowed for beautiful career progression and,of course, fashion. Their closeness has resulted in out-of-the-box designs as they have continued their collaboration. 

Roach started getting unique with Zendaya’s looks during her role in “The Greatest Showman.” Whether it’s an event, premiere or tour for a movie, Zendaya and Roach pay homage to her characters through fabulous dresses and tuxes. 

Roach’s creativity started subtly, with a red tux ringmaster look for “The Greatest Showman.” He later took a more detailed approach with “Spiderman: Homecoming” with a spider web dress. Roach’s style truly evolved and took shape with the films “Dune” and “Challengers.” He let his creative capabilities loose and designed elaborate dresses and tuxes for his star. 

The movie “Dune,” directed by Dennis Villeneuve, has incredible costume design. Its dystopian-esque outfits really capture the vibe of the film, and encapsulate his desolate desert vision. However, the dystopian desert vibe does not stop there and instead is presented outside of the movie studio. Roach takes “Dune’s” color palette and desert aesthetic shown in Zendaya’s character Chani and replicates that with her press tour looks. Her earth-toned dresses and futuristic accessories incite an interest the audience members and social media intakers can see (and obsess) over without even watching “Dune.” In a way, they see a preview of the film itself through her fashion. Teen Vogue describes Zendaya as being “key [to] the promotions for the first film.” Her character Chani was only in the first film for 7 minutes, but after appearing on red carpets in her elegantly designed looks, she built an eagerness and excitement for the entire production. When “Dune: Part Two” was released, Roach continued his genius once more. Zendaya announced her arrival at the “Dune: Part Two” event in an exciting dystopian vibe two-piece, catering to those who enjoy the futuristic genre. The earth-toned layers of fabric worn by the desert Fremen in “Dune” are shown in her brown cropped long-sleeve and long-slitted skirt. 

Roach took this momentum and used it again for the hit production “Challengers.” However, this time he fully dove into the symbols of the film and used what Vogue defines as “method dressing.” By styling Zendaya head-to-toe in various shades of green, tennis skirt pleats and literal tennis ball motifs, Roach encapsulates the sport of the film within his muse’s looks. Zendaya became a walking advertisement for “Challengers” and increased the media’s infatuation with the movie. 

Other stylists seem to have caught on to the momentum of Roach’s creative mind and began to follow in his footsteps.

Jenna Ortega, starring in the new film “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” paid homage to the original “Beetlejuice” film from 1988 in the 2024 version’s press tour. Her stylist, Enrique Melendez, also used the “method dressing” tactic when dressing his star. Ortega showed up with a bloody red dress to represent Lydia Deetz’s wedding dress from the original film. 

Melendez also played with silhouettes and adorned Ortega in a gray structured dress that matched sculptures from the original film. One of the best designs was the red tux to honor Beetlejuice himself. Melendez and Ortega worked together to capture the beauty of the old film while praising the new film, inviting intrigue from those who have seen and loved the old version. 

The evolution and standard for press tour looks are changing for stylists. The use of “method dressing” has shown a partnership between fashion and film in a way that benefits both fields. The use of social media also helps display this information and keeps the film trending, as seen with “Barbie,” “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” and many more. It’s exciting to see how creative stylists are allowing themselves to become, as a simple dress for press tours is seemingly old news. Being able to see your favorite actor dressed on theme in reference to the movie is very upfront and personal, which invites more conversation revolving around the production. Overall, Roach and Zendaya are to thank for this incredible development in fashion and film collaboration, so let’s give them a round of applause.

Support Student Media

Hi! I’m Kayla Friedman, A Magazine’s editor-in-chief. My staff and I are committed to bringing you the most important and entertaining news from the realms of fashion, beauty and culture. We are full-time students and hard-working journalists. While we get support from the student media fee and earned revenue such as advertising, both of those continue to decline. Your generous gift of any amount will help enhance our student experience as we grow into working professionals. Please go here to donate to A Magazine.