'Takers': The Clothes That Made The Men

Filed under: Celebrity Style , Interviews, Men's Style

It didn't take much work to transform the stars of 'Takers' into a dapper set of bank robbers. With Idris Elba's statuesque frame, T.I.'s swagger, and Michael Ealy's sex appeal, it's no surprise that styling the actors for the action thriller was quite easy-and fun-for costume designer Maya Lieberman.

"Their characters are fashion-forward; very stylish and very cool," Lieberman told AOL Black Voices. "So it wasn't difficult dressing them. They all know how to wear suits very well."

Impeccably clothed as if they stepped off the pages of GQ, Elba, T.I., and Ealy donned crisp Versace and Gucci suits as an infamous group of clever bank robbers in 'Takers,' which opens in theaters this weekend. The elusive crew, along with Chris Brown, Paul Walker and Hayden Christensen, try to execute one last high-stake heist, even with the LAPD on their tail. Lieberman and her team wanted to avoid dressing the guys like typical Hollywood crooks.

"We wanted to show that the guys are high-end bank robbers who can walk away from a job in Dolce & Gabbana," she says.
As the leader of the pack, Elba was outfitted in a wardrobe that made his character, Gordon Betts, stand out from the rest.

"We had to make sure viewers knew who was in charge," said Lieberman, who also dressed the British actor for 2009's 'Obsessed.'

"He's the boss, so he has to look the part."

Decked out in a white Versace dinner jacket juxtaposed with black shirt and trousers, Elba channeled James Bond's sleek style in the film.

"We were going for that Casino Royale feel," she said of Elba, who was nicknamed "The Hanger" because of how well the clothes look on his body.

The only member of the group imprisoned for an earlier job, Ghost, played by T.I. also wore Versace for most of the film. Even with a slimmer build than the others, the rapper still commands attention.

"He walks so tall," Lieberman said. "So he knows how to strut in a suit."
Lieberman used Ealy's blue eyes to decide what garments would best fit his character.

"Michael has light eyes, so we went with blues and silvers for him," says Lieberman of Ealy who wore a blue Gucci suit during his nightclub scene with Zoe Saldana (in a Collette Dinnigan mini-dress).
A gun-toting Chris Brown was dressed in edgier pieces like John Varvatos jackets and motorcycle boots.

"Because Chris is young, we wanted to dress him in trendier styles," Lieberman says. "His clothes gave him more of a rock and roll style."

 

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