Netflix

Best Dressed: Inside TV's Most Stunning Outfits, From 'Game of Thrones' to 'Scandal'

More expensive, more creative and more important -- designers from 'Star Trek: Discovery', 'The Handmaid's Tale', 'Stranger Things' and more share secrets

Malcolm Venable

Oct. 26, 2017

The wedding gown that Claire Foy wore in Netflix's The Crown took seven weeks to make. It is an exact replica of what Queen Elizabeth wore in 1947 when she married Philip, down to the embroidery, floral appliques and 10,000 seed pearls. It cost $37,000. It appeared on camera for nine minutes.

That is how important costumes have become on TV in 2017, with more than 500 original scripted series competing for eyeballs. Options across cable, broadcast, streaming, app and Internet-only channels make watching everything impossible, which means that in this high-stakes game, staggering visuals are the price of entry. Shows need more magic (and money) to stand out now, and costumes help cast that spell.

Of course, evocative looks are on everybody's mind in October, which is why TV Guide presents Best Dressed, our comprehensive look at the second skins worn by characters on TV's best shows.

Loving TV means loving costumes -- whether it be the shimmery confections cooked up with a limited budget and a prayer by Dancing with the Stars' powerhouse seamstresses or the steeped-in-mythology military uniforms worn by Starfleet officers on Star Trek: Discovery. Costumes, says Hala Bahmet, costume designer for This Is Usand The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, "give the audience visual cues: Who is this character and where have they been?"

The stunning white coat that Daenerys wore on Game of Thrones emulated the fur of Jon Snow's direwolf, Ghost, and hinted that perhaps their alliance would be more than just strategic after she rescued him from the White Walker army beyond The Wall.

Come with us as we play dress-up in all these metaphorical closets including: behind the scenes video tours of Star Trek, Dancing With The Stars, and Once Upon A Time; galleries of the best/worst decade in fashion, superheroes unmasked, a fur-xtragavanza fit for a queen; and features on the making of the most iconic costumes of 2017 including Handmaid's Tale, Game of Thrones, Discovery, and Stranger Things.