Original sketch of NBC Wonder Woman costume; designer explains process

The Costumers Designers Guild has a story on the creation of the much discussed (and disliked) costume that Adrianne Palicki wore in the failed NBC pilot including copies of the original design sketch.

In an interview with designer Emmy winning costumer Robert Blackman he describes the process of creation including “combing Wonder Woman encyclopedias, researching how her costume developed through the decades.”

According to the story, the design, illustrated by Christian Cordella, was

quickly approved by David E. Kelley and DC Comics. Then, Blackman went to Quantum Creation FX for construction. He loves exploring new technology, and notes that one can only really experiment while on the job. Blackman takes great delight in explaining the subtleties of the metal work on the Wonder Woman costumes, which feature a new technique where rubber is coated with chrome paint. He also muses, “With a different deadline I might have sub-contracted the soft goods… but I kept it under one roof because I needed to, and I would recommend them highly.”

The costume was created using new techniques. And Palicki, according to Blackman was a “willing conspiritor”:

“…She let me have my way with her. We were able to corset her tightly, and do everything we needed, in order to make iconic garments.”

The response was unexpected according to Blackman

“I was vilified and vindicated on an hourly basis,” he says, “There was outrage over everything from the fact that she was wearing pants to the boot color.”

He says the plan was to always have Palicki also wear a version of the traditional costume (a copy of the Cordella’s design is on the site) which was to illustrate the development of Wonder Woman’s character arc.

And here is the original design.

thanks to the TheWheresfores for the tip.