Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter breathes haunting beauty and cultural storytelling into Ryan Coogler’s horror drama ‘Sinners’.
Los Angeles: Ruth E. Carter, the Academy Award-winning designer who famously put Wakanda on the global fashion map with Black Panther, is now turning her visionary eye to horror. In Ryan Coogler’s Southern Gothic horror film Sinners, Carter blends Hoodoo traditions with a deeply personal narrative of legacy, identity, and spiritual survival.
Often described as Get Out’s Southern cousin steeped in ancestral magic, Sinners is a story where fashion is not just visual—it is visceral. Carter infuses each costume with symbolic meaning, drawing from haint blue hues, protective beadwork, and textures inspired by the American South’s haunted history.
Fashioning Spirits and Stories
Michael B. Jordan reunites with Carter in a dual role alongside rising star Miles Caton. But in Sinners, the real character arc lies in the costumes. “I wanted it to reflect the old South I knew as a child,” Carter shares. The clothing echoes the Great Migration, where movement through space was about survival, resilience, and spiritual fortitude.
Power in Sinners isn’t subtle—it’s saturated. Those who wield magic, bloodline, or pure survival instinct wear deep, bold tones that radiate authority and mystery. The costumes don’t just dress the characters—they conjure them into being.
Beyond Horror: Cultural Commentary Through Couture
With Sinners, the Coogler-Carter collaboration once again challenges the role of costume design in cinema. This is not about aesthetics alone. It’s about creating cultural commentary, emotional resonance, and yes, scaring the audience in the best way.
‘Sinners’ is more than just a horror film; it’s a cultural experience, exploring race, migration, and the unseen forces that shape human legacy.
