Mia's Goth Costumes in 'Frankenstein' Are Crazy: Beetles, Diamonds & 'Naked' Dress

Photo: Mia Goth/Netflix

Gothic romance is everywhere, on the catwalks, at home, and of course on your screen, where projects like "Frankenstein" are embracing the most beautiful and terrifying elements of the horror genre.

Guillermo del Toro's adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic 1818 novel, starring Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, and Oscar Isaac, was released on November 7 on Netflix.

Every detail of the film, from Elordi’s full-body makeup to the majestic landscapes of “Gosford House,” is carefully layered, blending history with fantasy to create an aesthetic that is both beautiful and chilling. This is especially true of the costumes, created by designer Kate Hawley.

Mia Goth, who plays two roles, Elizabeth, the scientist's girlfriend, and Clare, the mother of Frankenstein (the scientist, not the monster), represents two iconic female figures.

“Like Clare and Elizabeth, Mia reflects the ephemeral images of women, mother, saint, angel, wife, bride,” explains Hawley.

For Clare, she was inspired by the Romantic period, with dramatic veils and sheer layers that convey a sense of fading memory. For Elizabeth, she drew on scientific illustrations from the 1850s:

“Her palette is dominated by green and purple, reflecting the bright colors of beetle wings, cells, X-rays, and Victorian book covers.”

All of the costumes, including those of the extras, were created from scratch by Hawley's team. Some of them required incredibly intricate techniques and the work of dozens of artisans.

“There’s a special scarf that Elizabeth wears in the film, inspired by a period coat,” she says. “We created a design with fractal patterns that were reminiscent of insect wings.”

For the jewelry, the team collaborated with Tiffany & Co., where Christopher Young, the brand’s Creative Director of Heritage, became part of the project. “After seeing the world Guillermo was building and my sketches, he opened up the Tiffany archives to us,” recalls Hawley.

One of the most unique pieces was a beetle pendant from 1914, made using Tiffany’s famous Favrile glass technique. “The Favrile glass inspired the way we dyed and treated the fabrics to create that beetle-like glow,” she adds. Goth wears this pendant in her first scene as Elizabeth, where the blue and green hues of the pendant perfectly match the dress and feathered outfit.

Another breathtaking moment is the historic Wade Family pendant, which Goth wears as she plays the piano while wearing a sparkly dress. With 40.45 carats of European-cut diamonds, this 1900 design makes its public debut and film debut in “Frankenstein.”

In the final scenes, the “bride of Frankenstein”’s dress is a vivid symbol of the monster itself: the dress mimics the creature’s bandages and exposed ribs. The red cross around her neck is a reference to Frankenstein’s mother, who is seen wearing a red veil at the beginning of the film, and symbolizes the world laden with religious iconography that del Toro has created.

One of Elizabeth's boldest outfits is the see-through green shirt, a modern homage to 60s horror films.

“Guillermo wanted her style to be very simple, showing off the body shape,” explains Hawley. “It was a reference to the horror films of the time, with a soft, dry, watery feel that suited Tamara Deverell’s set design.”

In the end, every detail, from Tiffany's beetles to dresses that glow like ghosts, turns "Frankenstein" into a visual spectacle where fashion and fear become one. And Mia Goth, with her style between mystery, eroticism and Victorian elegance, proves why she has become the new icon of "scream queens" in modern cinema.