One of the more noticeable things about the Disney Plus show Moon Knight was its spectacular costume design, from both of the titular characters’ costumes to the clothes regular people wear. Costume designer Meghan Kasperlik said she wanted to create attire based in actual Egyptian mythology.
In an interview with Deadline, Kasperlik said she did a lot of research to make sure the costumes from the show were accurate and honored their influences. Kaperlik’s costumes were so well received that they were nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes.
The final episode of the series, “Gods and Monsters,” was submitted for Emmy consideration. That episode featured the famous appearance by hippopotamus goddess Taweret, which Kaperlik said was very special to her and her team. She said collaborating with Marvel helped her achieve her artistic vision.
“Working with Marvel is great because the world is never too big and you are able to pitch ideas. This was going to be the first time that Moon Knight was coming to life from comic to screen and all wanted to the costumes to be epic. The Moon Knight costume, Scarlet Scarab and Harrow changed in design from the beginning of the process to screen. The journey to get to screen was a beautiful transition and I was so happy to be a part of helping create these characters.”
There’s more to it than just making costumes, she said.
“But the costumes are not just all about the suits. We had an Egyptian Director, Mohamed Diab, and it was very important to him that we were portraying the real Egypt. Honoring Ancient Egypt but also honoring the people living there today. I did a tremendous amount of research about Egyptian culture and it is showcased throughout the series in both the fantasy costumes and the contemporary costumes.”
The most important costume in the show is obviously the title character, and Kasperlik said it was also inspired by Egyptian mythology.
“Oscar Isaac’s Moon Knight was of course inspired by the comic, but also by Ancient Egypt and this included the origin story from Khonshu. Incorporating Egyptian symbols, hieroglyphs, Khonshu’s oath, and mummy wrappings seemed like a lot, but they came together harmoniously. When Oscar put the suit on the first time, Moon Knight came to life.”
As for her favorite costume, Kasperlik said it was also a fan favorite: Taweret.
“Each costume in the series has meaning to me. I love the way that so many of the suits came together and the reveal of each on set. The costume that holds so much personal meaning to me is Taweret. She came together by every person in my department having a hand in building. From the sourcing of fabric, Luca, our in house metal smith, hammering the metal for her neckpiece, head piece and jewelry, Aleanza, the in house leather worker, hammering the leather with custom made hieroglyph stamps, Agi, one of my tailors, being meticulous with the build of the costume, and Wilberth creating the beetle and back piece to complete the costume. Each time Antonio Salib put the costume on it was a proud moment for myself and my team.”
Moon Knight has been nominated for eight Emmys. It is currently streaming on Disney Plus.