DIRECTOR'S CUT

Director’s Cut: Four Filmmakers in the Oscars Race Collaborate With Their Leading Women For W

Feb. 13, 2019

Directed and Photographed by Yorgos Lanthimos; Styled by Sara Moonves. Hair by Mara Roszak at Starworks Artists; Makeup by Rachel Goodwin for Bobbi Brown Cosmetics at Streeters; Manicures by Emi Kudo for Dior Vernis at Opus Beauty. Set design by Gille Mills at the Magnet Agency. Produced by Meghan Gallagher at Connect The Dots; Production Manager: Jane Oh at Connect The Dots; Lead Photography Assistant: Zac Hahn; Photography Assistants: Sherman Lee, Brian Chism; Art layout: Vasilis Marmatakis; Photography Lab: Icon; Production Assistants: Nikki Patrlja, Ben Kilpatrick, Jeremy Sinclair, Hannah Murphy; Fashion Assistants: Allia Alliata di Montereale, Nadia Beeman; Set Assistants: Cory Bailey, Doug Stearns, Sara Gernsbacher; Tailor: Isa Kriegeskotte at Isa Stitches.

Visual storytelling has always been at the core of W‘s DNA. And, in this fragmented information era, few can still tell a compelling tale through images like a filmmaker. For our second issue featuring directors behind the cover stories, we worked with four of the best: Yorgos Lanthimos, Spike Lee, Marielle Heller, and Alfonso Cuarón, all of whom have films in the Oscars race this year and who brought in a few of their favorite actresses to help. Lanthimos, whose film The Favourite is up for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actress for Emma Stone, with whom he collaborated here in a wild tale of a suburban dog lady gone mad. Lee’s BlackKklansman, meanwhile, is in the running in six categories, including Best Picture and Best Director; following up on that cracking piece of historical fiction, he brought in his longtime muse Angela Bassett to recreate and reinvent some of the 20th century’s most iconic photographs here. Meanwhile, Heller will be at the Oscars with Can You Ever Forgive Me?, which has three nominations including Best Actress candidate Melissa McCarthy, but she calls on her previous leading lady from The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Bel Powley, to play the Last Woman in the World. And Cuarón’s highly personal film, Roma, which has 10 nominations including Best Picture and Best Director, puts his new star Yalitza Aparicio into his own past. For W, he put the Best Actress candidate squarely in the present, at the U.S.-Mexico border, up against a wall that cannot hope to contain her spirit. See all four directors’ unique, powerful visions, here.

Emma Stone wears a Louis Vuitton top, pants, and belt; David Webb earrings; Buccellati bracelets; Ferragamo’s Creations sandals.

Yalitza Aparicio wears an Edith A. Miller tank; Agnona skirt.

Bel Powley wears a Dior dress and fishnet jumpsuit; Tiffany & Co. bracelet.

Angela Bassett wears a Gucci dress; Bulgari bracelet.

Directed and Photographed by Yorgos Lanthimos; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Emma Stone wears a Richard Quinn caftan; David Webb earrings; rings: Carole Le Bris Perez, Elizabeth Locke, Haute Victoire (right hand, from left), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth, Elizabeth Locke, Doyle & Doyle (left hand, from left); Buccellati bracelets; Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. bangle; Ferragamo’s Creations shoes; Stone’s own pearl earrings (throughout). Leashes by Goyard and Max Bone.

Chloé tunic; David Webb earrings; rings (from left): Haute Victoire, Elizabeth Locke, Carole Le Bris Perez.

Valentino dress; David Webb earrings; rings: Carole Le Bris Perez (right hand), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth, Elizabeth Locke, Doyle & Doyle (left hand, from left); bracelets: Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., Buccellati (right hand, from left), Buccellati, Buccellati, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. (left hand, from left).

This spread and following spread: Michael Kors Collection dress; David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace; Buccellati diamond and gold bracelets; Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. gold bracelets; rings: Carole Le Bris Perez, Elizabeth Locke, Prounis Jewelry, Haute Victoire (right hand, from top), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth, Elizabeth Locke, Doyle & Doyle (left hand, from left); Ferragamo’s Creations shoes. Beauty note: Play with punchy pigment. Nars’s Single Eyeshadow in Goldfinger offers a full-wattage finish in a single stroke.

Kwaidan Editions dress; David Webb earrings; rings: Elizabeth Locke, Carole Le Bris Perez (right hand, from left), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth (left hand, from left).

Stella McCartney playsuit and shoes; David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace; Buccellati bracelets; rings: Haute Victoire, Prounis Jewelry, Carole Le Bris Perez (right hand, from left), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth, Elizabeth Locke, Doyle & Doyle (left hand, from left).

Zimmermann bandeau bikini top; Araks shorts; David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace.

David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace; stylist’s own robe.

Rosamosario robe, bra, and panty; David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace; Buccellati bracelet; rings: Prounis Jewelry, Elizabeth Locke, Carole Le Bris Perez (right hand, from left), Haute Victoire, Elizabeth Locke (left hand, from left).

Directed and Photographed by Yorgos Lanthimos; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Emma Stone wears a Louis Vuitton top, pants, and belt; David Webb earrings; Fox & Bond necklace; Buccellati bracelets; rings: Haute Victoire, Elizabeth Locke, Carole Le Bris Perez (right hand, from left), Elizabeth Locke, Irene Neuwirth, Elizabeth Locke (left hand, from left); Ferragamo’s Creations sandals.

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón; Photograph by Carlos Somonte; Styled by Valentina Collado.

Yalitza wears Boss dress.

Yalitza wears Gabriela Hearst dress.

Yalitza wears Dôen dress.

Yalitza wears Alternative Apparel tank top; Tory Burch skirt; Julia y Renata belt.

Yalitza wears Julio x Francisco Cancino shirt; Agnona skirt; stylist’s own belt.

Yalitza wears Jonathan Cohen shirt and skirt; Ancient Greek Sandals sandals; stylist’s own belt.

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón; Photograph by Carlos Somonte; Styled by Valentina Collado.

Yalitza wears Brora cardigan; Massimo Dutti skirt.

Directed by Marielle Heller; Photograph by Collier Schorr; Styled by Elin Svahn.

Bel Powley wears a 4 Moncler Simone Rocha apron; Fendi dress; Calvin Klein 205W39NYC tank; Lee M. Hale earrings (throughout); Aries panty; Foundrae necklace (throughout); Tiffany & Co. bracelet (throughout); vintage belt from Early Halloween, New York; Falke socks; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around, New York.

Prada dress and sweater. Beauty note: Easy does it. Nars Sheer Glow Foundation delivers lightweight, buildable coverage that lets natural complexions shine through.

Vetements trench; 4 Moncler Simone Rocha hooded raincoat; Simone Rocha scarf; vintage belt from Early Halloween; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around, New York.

Directed by Marielle Heller; Photograph by Collier Schorr; Styled by Elin Svahn.

Miu Miu sweater and skirt; Zimmerli of Switzerland top; Falke socks; vintage belt from Early Halloween, New York.

Loewe sweater; 4 Moncler Simone Rocha dress; Dior fishnet jumpsuit; Falke socks.

DSquared2 jacket; Fendi dress; Dior fishnet jumpsuit; vintage belt from Early Halloween, New York; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around; Falke socks.

Simone Rocha cape; 4 Moncler Simone Rocha dress; Dior fishnet jumpsuit; Versace panty; Falke socks; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around, New York.

Vetements dress; 4 Moncler Simone Rocha gloves.

Gucci blouse.

Dior dress and fishnet jumpsuit; Lee M. Hale earrings; Foundrae necklace; Tiffany & Co. bracelet; Falke socks; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around, New York.

Vetements dress; Dior fishnet jumpsuit; Lee M. Hale earrings; Foundrae necklace; 4 Moncler Simone Rocha gloves; Falke socks; vintage boots from What Goes Around Comes Around, New York.

Directed by Spike Lee; Photograph by LaToya Ruby Frazier; Styled by Costume designer Ruth E. Carter.

For this shot, LaToya Ruby Frazier was inspired by her own work with Spike Lee for the BlacKkKlansman poster. Angela Bassett wears a Valentino dress; Kenneth Jay Lane earrings; Elizabeth Locke ring; Rodarte shoes.

Posed in a setup often used by Irving Penn, one of Spike Lee’s favorite photographers, Bassett wears a Moschino gown and Moschino Couture gloves; Balenciaga earrings; Toni + Chloë Goutal necklace; stylist’s own stole.

The exuberance of Charles “Teenie” Harris’s pictures of African American communities in Pittsburgh was the starting point for this image. Fendi coat; Nili Lotan dress; Bulgari necklace; Lagos ring; Miu Miu shoes. Beauty note: Embrace the spotlight. Chanel moisturizing Baume Essentiel in Sculpting imparts a showstopping glow via a sleek pearly stick.

A 1950s photograph by Gordon Parks, an ode to the Ralph Ellison novel Invisible Man, gets a glamorous reinterpretation. Gucci dress; Tiffany & Co. earrings; Bulgari bracelet; Gismondi 1754 ring; Prada shoes.

In his hometown of Bamako, Mali, Malick Sidibé chronicled the life and culture of his community, with carefully posed and styled photographs. Bassett pays homage, wearing a Salvatore Ferragamo blazer, blouse, pants, and shoes; Kenneth Jay Lane earrings; Boss pocket square; Chanel necklace; Vendorafa rings; bracelets: Elizabeth Locke, Marina B, Elizabeth Locke (right hand, from top); Vendorafa (left hand).

In her groundbreaking “Kitchen Table Series” (1990), the artist Carrie Mae Weems explored race, class, and gender in a domestic setting. Bassett channels that attitude of confident reflection, wearing a Gucci dress; Kenneth Jay Lane earrings; Elizabeth Locke ring (right hand); Cartier ring (left hand).

Bassett brings back to life the New York jazz-age spirit present in many of Roy DeCarava’s black and white images. Roberto Cavalli dress; Bijou Van Ness fascinator; Rodarte earrings and bracelet; Marina B gold bracelet; Cartier ring; Miu Miu shoes; stylist’s own stole.

The soul of the 1930s Harlem Renaissance, which was extensively documented at the time by the black photographer James Van Der Zee, is alive and well. Gucci dress, scarf, feline necklace, fan, and shoes; Jennifer Behr turban; Fox & Bond necklace; Gismondi 1754 ring.