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The worlds of beauty and entertainment have become more closely intertwined than ever, as brands seek out collaborations that go beyond sponsorships. Los Angeles-based makeup artist Donni Davy hopes to set a new blueprint with Half Magic, the beauty brand she founded in 2022 as a joint venture with A24, the independent film company behind hit TV show Euphoria, and films Uncut Gems and Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Half Magic launched as a direct-to-consumer label, sold online in the US. It entered the UK this March, exclusively distributed through specialist retailer Beauty Bay. The brand sells products perfect for anyone trying to recreate that Euphoria look, with eye paints and liners, blushes, lip kits and face gems ranging from $10 to $144.
It’s the first consumer brand to be developed by A24 — a company that has exploded in popularity by placing bets on social media to foster an audience of young film obsessives steeped in internet culture. Now, A24 is extending that approach to makeup, as it seeks to appeal to a generation of young consumers who may not connect with or feel represented by more established beauty brands. But, can Half Magic last beyond the current interest in Euphoria?
Davy believes its ethos will resonate. The brand has eschewed the pursuit of perfection in favour of a more positive and realistic approach to beauty, says Davy — the same reason the makeup on Euphoria has resonated so much with a Gen Z audience.
Click on Davy’s Instagram and these same looks have been recreated by her engaged and swiftly multiplying fanbase, who often ask for product recommendations and tag her in their creations. “I think the reason it took off is because you see these looks on actors, who are playing these characters going through emotional ups and downs,” says Davy. Rue (played by Zendaya) wears sooty liner and has glitter tears streaming down her cheeks, while Jules (Hunter Schafer) boasts a dizzying array of technicolour eye makeup styles. “They’re not wearing a lot of foundation, so they’re fleshy, sweaty, crying, screaming — all of that was really refreshing.” She hopes to give young audiences new impetus to embrace their unique traits and moods. “Marrying fantasy looks that we’re used to seeing on a runway with mundane everyday life has inspired me.”
In June, Half Magic closed its first round of investment with funding from A24 along with Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG), a premier consumer investor that has backed inclusive, cruelty-free and vegan label Milk Makeup and celebrity hairstylist Jen Atkin’s haircare brand Ouai among others; Imaginary Ventures, the early-stage venture capital firm established by Net-a-Porter founder Natalie Massenet and investor Nick Brown; and Access Entertainment, which focuses on investments across the entertainment sector and is led by TV executive Danny Cohen.
Davy’s “unique perspective on beauty” impressed Imaginary Ventures partner Kelly Dill, who led the funding in Half Magic. “[Her] innovative approach to the category comes through in all of the brand’s products, using colour as a vehicle for self-expression.” The brand’s “unique” positioning between beauty and entertainment added to its appeal, she says.
Julianne Kur, principal at ACG, believes that Half Magic can “capture a significant share” of colour cosmetics, one of the “fastest-growing” segments in beauty, thanks to its “ability to achieve expressive, transformative looks, and tools that allow you to bring that into your everyday.”
Michelle Liu, general manager at Half Magic, declined to share how much was raised, but says the funds will be used to support the brand’s growth, including fuelling retail expansion via the launch of its first physical store in the US at the end of the year. Liu — who joined the business after more than two decades working in beauty, largely in marketing and brand management roles at LVMH and The Estée Lauder Companies — declined to comment on Half Magic’s annual revenues or provide a timeline for profitability, but says that the brand is projected to grow 300 per cent year-on-year in 2023.
The Euphoria effect
Half Magic isn’t alone in leveraging the entertainment industry beyond the red carpet. Rihanna turned her 2023 Super Bowl appearance into the ultimate beauty marketing opportunity, when she paused during the 13-minute-performance to touch up her makeup using Fenty Beauty’s Invisimatte Instant Setting and Blotting Powder. Makeup artist Pat McGrath’s namesake brand has partnered with Netflix’s production company, Shondaland, on a makeup range. Mac Cosmetics and Nyx have also collaborated with hit shows like Stranger Things and Sex Education, respectively.
“There’s no question that Euphoria was a game changer,” says Barbara E Kahn, a marketing professor at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. “It was a very popular, trendsetting show. A lot of attention was paid to it, and a lot of what it was known for is the innovation in makeup. Really crazy, beautiful makeup. We were all waiting for [a beauty launch] to happen.”
However, most of these cultural moments are fleeting. Collaborations work well because they’re sold in limited drops. It remains to be seen whether Half Magic can maintain long-term interest as the hubbub around Euphoria settles down (the current season came to an end in early 2022, and new episodes are not expected until at least 2025, according to producers). It also faces greater competition as many brands now sell products that let users replicate the iridescent looks first seen on Euphoria. Blursh’s Drip Drip features heavily on TikTok. Milk Makeup, Natasha Denona, REM Beauty, Rare Beauty and Simi Haze Beauty all sell holographic products.
Liu believes that Half Magic stands out with its ethos, which was propelled but isn’t defined by Euphoria. “Donny and I inadvertently created an entire movement that translated into people thinking differently about makeup. It gave permission to people to bring expression into their everyday life, in a way they didn’t before,” she says. Half Magic also sits uniquely at the intersection of entertainment, allowing it access to unique benefits, such as the talent or even knowing what trends will be driving the culture,” says Liu.
The goal is to continue to fuel the conversations and themes that emerged from the show, such as self-awareness, self-discovery and self-expression, and to keep evolving with consumers as they grow up, Liu explains. “We built the brand to have longevity.” Davy echoes that sentiment. “We took the much harder route; it would have been easy and so much instant gratification if I had just collaborated on a makeup line, but I wanted to build something more meaningful that would transcend the trend.” The brand, both executive stress, is “not all about Euphoria”. There may not be new episodes to watch, but “you ll see more from [us] over the next 12 months”, says Liu.
What’s next
Davy began her career doing odd jobs, such as applying makeup for employees getting corporate headshots. In 2018, she got her big break when she worked on the makeup for Under the Silver Lake, a neo-noir black comedy starring actor Andrew Garfield as a stoner in Los Angeles piecing together an occult conspiracy of the super-rich. “It had really cool makeup; I would even say it’s a precursor to the Euphoria style of makeup,” she reflects. Davy’s work on the film caught the eye of executive producer Dan Levinson, who invited her to interview for the pilot of Euphoria in 2018.
Since the first season of Euphoria, Davy has been inundated with “dozens” of requests from beauty brands of all sizes (she declines to name who) to collaborate. “I was suddenly blowing up and people knew who I was. It felt like it happened overnight and I wasn’t expecting it.” What followed was “a natural conversation” with the show’s producers, who saw that makeup was “blowing up” as a category and agreed to finance the brand’s launch, she says.
The next step for Half Magic is to enter bricks-and-mortar in the US this year before potentially exploring more retail distribution partnerships globally, says Liu. “We want to win in our home market and really perfect that customer experience before you go elsewhere.” She hopes that a physical store will help attract new consumers who may not have watched the show, and allow for a regular feedback loop with the brand’s fans.
The makeup is developed in-house by Davy and Half Magic’s director of product development and packaging Samantha Sachs, who joined from Unilever-owned Hourglass Cosmetics. The priority is creating quality products. Its glitter, for example, is “multi-dimensional” and “made up of very specific proportions of colours”, says Liu. “Some makeup looks better in photography or on social media than it does in person and disappoints in real life. Ours are probably the opposite.”
Half Magic will introduce more products and enter new categories in 2024, although Davy declined to share further details. She emphasises her high standards for the brand, which she hopes will appeal not only to everyday consumers but also other makeup artists working on film, TV and in other creative sectors. “I want it to be easy to use for makeup newbies who look to Euphoria or pop culture for inspiration, but I also want my peers to take it seriously [and] be blown away by these formulas.”
That’s top of mind as the brand works on new launches, she adds. “My mission is to have integrity and intent with every different element that we branch into.”
Key takeaway: After receiving numerous beauty brand collaboration requests, Donni Davy, the makeup artist behind Euphoria’s much-talked-about looks, realised she was onto something. Thanks to a global boom in cosmetics, and positive reception of the show’s approach to unfiltered beauty, entertainment company A24 funded the launch of Half Magic. Fresh off another funding round, the makeup brand is gearing up to open its first physical store in the US. But, Davy still has to prove that Half Magic has legs without Euphoria, of which new episodes won’t air until at least 2025. She believes an unwavering emphasis on ethos and quality will see the brand through.
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Beyond the red carpet: How beauty brands are leveraging the entertainment industry
