The New Look (TV series)

Last updated

The New Look
The New Look (TV series) title card.png
Genre
Created by Todd A. Kessler
Starring
Composer James S. Levine
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10
Production
Executive producers
Producer Helen Shaver
Running time36–61 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network Apple TV+
ReleaseFebruary 14, 2024 (2024-02-14) 
present

The New Look is an American biographical drama television series created by Todd A. Kessler that premiered on Apple TV+ on February 14, 2024. [1] [2] A second season is in development. [3]

Contents

Plot

The series follows fashion designers Christian Dior and Coco Chanel through the World War II Nazi occupation of Paris and its aftermath.

During the occupation, Dior continues working for Lucien Lelong's fashion house, designing clothes for Nazi wives and girlfriends despite his distaste for the work. Dior finances his sister Catherine's work with the French Resistance, and is distraught when she is arrested by Nazis. Dior is unable to find her before the Allies arrive, and he turns to a mystic, Delahaye, who tells him that Catherine will return safely. Dior's belief is seemingly vindicated when Catherine does return alive.

Chanel, who is a well-established designer, closed her fashion house during the war to avoid designing for Nazis, but her celebrity status brings her into contact with them, and she uses these connections to have her nephew Andre released from capture. Chanel takes Hans von Dincklage, a Nazi spy, as a lover and is pressured to participate in a failed plot to send secret communication to Winston Churchill. After the liberation, Chanel is targeted by MI6 who want to have her exposed as a Nazi collaborator, and she flees to Switzerland.

Dior obtains financing from Marcel Boussac to open his own fashion house. Raymonde Zehnacker leaves Lelong to join Dior as partner and run the business, as Dior is more interested in the creative aspects of the work. Dior's work distances him from Catherine, who leaves Paris for their hometown of Callian to recover from the trauma of her imprisonment. In order to meet the launch deadline for the season, Dior permits Zehnacker to poach seamstresses from other fashion houses; Pierre Balmain protests and threatens to have Dior removed from the Couture Council, but Lelong decides not to sanction Dior.

In exile, Chanel struggles for money. She threatens legal action against her partners, the Wertheimers, over profits and control of the Chanel brand, despite her lawyer's advice that such action will bring to light Chanel's business with the Nazis. Chanel successfully negotiates new terms with the Wertheimers, but von Dincklage arranges for Elsa, Chanel's best friend, to die, and destroys Chanel's relationship with Andre by revealing her Nazi connections to him. Andre reports her to French police's Nazi Investigation Bureau, and she is arrested.

To Dior's surprise, Catherine attends the launch of his fashion line and learns that his perfume is named after her. Carmel Snow, editor-in-chief at Harper's Bazaar, also attends the launch in the hopes of finding a French designer to highlight. At the very end of the fashion show, Dior sends out the model wearing the outfit that defines his fashion line as the "New Look".

Cast and characters

Main

Recurring

Guest

Episodes

No.Title [6] Directed byWritten by [7] Original release date [8]
1"Just You Wait and See" Todd A. Kessler Todd A. KesslerFebruary 14, 2024 (2024-02-14)
2"The Hour"Todd A. KesslerTodd A. KesslerFebruary 14, 2024 (2024-02-14)
3"Nothing but Blue Skies" Helen Shaver Dani Vetere and Todd A. Kessler & Jason RabeFebruary 14, 2024 (2024-02-14)
4"What a Difference"Helen ShaverNing Zhou and Todd A. Kessler & Jason RabeFebruary 21, 2024 (2024-02-21)
5"Give Your Heart and Soul to Me" Julia Ducournau Ashlin Halfnight and Todd A. Kessler & Jason RabeFebruary 28, 2024 (2024-02-28)
6"If You Believed in Me"Julia DucournauTeleplay by: Todd A. Kessler & Jason Rabe
Story by: Todd A. Kessler & Jason Rabe and Matthew Fantaci
March 6, 2024 (2024-03-06)
7"It All Came True"Helen ShaverTeleplay by: Todd A. Kessler & Jason Rabe
Story by: Carter Harris and Matthew Fantaci
March 13, 2024 (2024-03-13)
8"I Love You Most of All"Helen ShaverTeleplay by: Amanda Coe
Story by: Carter Harris and Amanda Coe
March 20, 2024 (2024-03-20)
9"Will You Return" Jeremy Podeswa Teleplay by: Jason Rabe
Story by: Carter Harris and Jason Rabe
March 27, 2024 (2024-03-27)
10"What a Day This Has Been"Jeremy PodeswaTodd A. Kessler & Jason Rabe & David Rabe April 3, 2024 (2024-04-03)

Production

It was announced in February 2022 that Apple TV+ had greenlighted the project, which has the potential to become an anthology series. Todd A. Kessler was set to write, direct and executive produce, with Ben Mendelsohn and Juliette Binoche starring. [9] In May, Maisie Williams joined the cast, [10] with John Malkovich, Emily Mortimer, and Claes Bang added in June. [11]

Filming for the first season began by May 2022 in Paris. [12]

The second season was set to begin filming in November 2023 before the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. [3]

Music

The New Look (Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by
various artists
ReleasedApril 3, 2024 (2024-04-03)
Label
Producer Jack Antonoff
Singles from The New Look (Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack)
  1. "White Cliffs of Dover"
    Released: January 31, 2024
  2. "Now Is the Hour"
    Released: February 7, 2024

In November 2023, it was announced that Jack Antonoff would produce the soundtrack for The New Look, which consists of covers of popular songs from the early and mid-20th century. [13] Scheduled to be released on April 3, 2024, the soundtrack album for the first season comprises 10 covers and will be the first release by Antonoff's Shadow of the City record label, under Dirty Hit. [14] Florence and the Machine's cover of "The White Cliffs of Dover" was released as the first single on January 31, 2024. [15] [16] The second single, a cover of "Now Is the Hour" by the 1975 was released on February 7, 2024. [17] [18]

The New Look (Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack) track listing [15] [19]
No.TitleLength
1."White Cliffs of Dover" (Florence and the Machine)3:00
2."Now Is the Hour" (The 1975)2:32
3."Blue Skies" (Lana Del Rey)3:20
4."What a Difference a Day Makes" (Perfume Genius)3:37
5."La Vie en rose" (Nick Cave)3:55
6."It's Only a Paper Moon" (Beabadoobee)2:26
7."I Wished on the Moon" (Joy Oladokun)3:35
8."You Always Hurt the One You Love" (Bartees Strange)3:23
9."I Cover the Waterfront" (Sam Dew)3:17
10."Almost Like Being in Love" (Bleachers)2:55
11."The New Look" (main title theme)1:02

Release

The series was released with the first three episodes on February 14, 2024, followed by one episode every Wednesday through April 3. [1]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 59% based on 54 reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "The New Look benefits from impressive production values and a talented cast, even if they're often let down by a somewhat scattered story." [20] On Metacritic, the series holds a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. [21] Anita Singh of the Telegraph awarded the series three stars out of five, praising the show’s “sumptious” look but criticizing the decision to shoot in English. [22]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
Astra TV Awards August 18, 2024 Best Guest Actress in a Streaming Drama Series Glenn Close Pending [23]
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards September 7-8, 2024 Outstanding Period Costumes for a Series Karen Muller Serreau, Catherine Boisgontier, and Emmanuelle Pertus (for "What a Day This Has Been")Nominated [24]

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References

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