Add to that several hours of body makeup, due to Madison’s bruises from that epic 25-minute scene—where she insisted on performing her own stunts—and doing her own pole dancing. “She had some monster bruises, and a lot of her skin is showing,” Johnson points out. “So she was just covered in body makeup.”
For Ani’s face, however, which is in nearly every scene, Johnson developed a simple beauty look grounded in the character. “We wanted it to look like something she could do herself,” Johnson explains. “We knew the hair was going to be the focal point, so Mikey suggested, ‘What if my signature look was this wing?’ And then lots of glitter—shout out to Rihanna for Fenty Diamond Bomb. It came out really nice on camera.” The finishing touch was a simple matte pout, courtesy of Makeup by Mario in shades Almond and Toasty. “Whenever Mikey put it on, she felt like the character was complete,” Johnson says. Baker appreciated that the makeup glancingly enhanced Madison’s natural beauty: “Mikey has such a cool, unique look, and I wanted to make sure she didn’t disappear under it all,” he says.
Ani’s look evolves as the film progresses, with Johnson and Sierakowski plotting distinct looks for the club (straight hair, loads of glitter), for what they dubbed “playing wifey” (hair with some curl for more polish), and for a Vegas trip (“whatever craziness we wanted”). But in the latter half Ani’s makeup is almost entirely stripped away. “We used fake eyelashes as her security blanket in her girlfriend look,” Johnson says. “Then during the home invasion, those come off and she’s not wearing much makeup. She’s really rocking her natural beauty for a lot of the movie.”
Photo: Courtesy of NEON
The nails, on the other hand, remain extra throughout. “The nails go hand in hand with that line of work because they’re so alluring,” Sierakowski says. Madison chose her own nail design, full of rhinestones and butterfly appliqués, at Akiko Nails in the East Village. Claws by Joy created the character Lulu’s money-sign nails, and Johnson added an Easter egg with Diamond’s set: little strawberries, a nod to the character in Baker’s last film, Red Rocket.
Both department heads aimed to portray with accuracy and respect something that still remains “such a hush-hush topic,” Johnson says. “Sex work is work, and these people should be celebrated.” Sierakowski adds: “Dancing takes a lot of energy—physically, mentally, and emotionally. I have such major respect for the people who do it.” Their research included a visit with Baker to the strip club HQ in Midtown, where the club scenes were eventually filmed—and which happened to be their first in-person meeting with the director. (“That’s very true to Sean,” Johnson notes. “He’s just so real and down to earth but also fun and cool.”)
