“You work on commission, right? Big mistake. Big! Huge!”
35 years later, that iconic Pretty Woman scene is still talked about today. When Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) walks into an upscale store, to get her revenge on two snobby sales associates who had refused to work with her, we all collectively cheered. I still get chills when she saunters in wearing her polished buttoned dress, white gloves, and dramatic black brimmed chapeau; just a few days prior the L.A. prostitute had worn her more casual clothes—a slinky cut-out dress and thigh-high boots, a sweater tied around her waist—and was swiftly chased out the store. But now, in her snazzy new movie-makeover outfit, financed by her new wealthy businessman client Edward Lewis (Richard Grant), Vivian holds power. The film’s costume designer, Marilyn Vance, is to thank.
In the three decades since the film came out, many Hollywood rom-coms have tried to replicate the magic of the Pretty Woman fashion transformation. When Vivian begins dressing more elegantly to fit into Edward’s world, we see her slowly start to receive the respect she deserves; clothes are used as a metaphor for her transformative character arch. “In each successive look, you begin to see her take his `less is more direction,” Vance said in an interview. “By the end, she s very simply put together—pure sophistication.” The effective use of fashion to drive the story forward in such a way has been endlessly replicated by countless films since—including in 1999’s She’s All That, 2001’s The Princess Diaries, and 2006’s The Devil Wears Prada, among many others.
Still, there is something unique and untouchable about Vance’s approach in Pretty Woman. It totally set the standard. Turns out, it’s because everything was custom and well thought-out: Vance designed almost every single piece you see Roberts wear throughout the film, including the iconic red dress she slips into for the opera. “The studio really wanted black, but I knew it needed to be red,” Vance said. Her iconic prostitute dress near the beginning of the film, meanwhile, was actually inspired by a 1960s bathing suit. “The boots I did buy—I had to order them from a store called NaNa in Chelsea, England,” says Vance.
Sure, why the Pretty Woman wardrobe is so eye-catching has everything to do with the juxtaposition of Vivian navigating two worlds. But the timelessness of the designs has also ensured that her outfits hold up in 2025. The silk brown polka-dot midi dress she wears to a derby? Any leading lady could wear that this year and still look entirely chic. Ditto goes for the baggy white dress shirt that Vivian throws over her bodycon mini dress. Even when her character is supposed to look slightly disheveled, there is an effortlessness to her style that still resonates today. It’s why we keep returning to the movie over and over again. Plus, Gere’s slick suits certainly don’t hurt either. Who doesn’t love a good heartthrob?
