Dan Levy

Summary

Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud
Episode: Dan Levy
Date: May 6, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this rich and revealing episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud (in conversation with guest host Tim Blanks) invites Dan Levy—multi award-winning creator and star of Schitt’s Creek—to delve into his lifelong relationship with clothing, identity, comedy, and the delicate interface between what we reveal and hide through fashion. Levy discusses his fashion obsessions, family dynamics, growing up gay, the creative process behind Schitt’s Creek, and the interplay between introversion and high fashion as a form of self-discovery and silent communication.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Dan Levy’s Personal Style & Early Fashion Obsessions

• Daily Eyewear Ritual

  • Levy is a passionate collector of eyewear, cycling through pairs daily (02:09):

    “I change glasses every day. I probably have hundreds... I have trunks full of them.”
    (Dan Levy, 01:34 & 03:13)

• Childhood & Family Critiques

  • Levy’s childhood was marked by frequent outfit changes—sometimes two or three a day—and sharp critiques of his parents’ looks (13:29):

    “From the belt up, great. From the belt down, gross.”
    (Dan Levy, recounting a memory, 13:53)

  • His desire for autonomy in fashion partly spurred him to work from a young age:

    “Now I shop too much. It’s all kind of in reaction to the formative years of my life not having access to something I was so fascinated by.”
    (Dan Levy, 15:58)

Family, Comedy & the Hidden Interior

• Life with Eugene Levy

  • Dan accepted his father’s seriousness, noting many comedians are not “on” at home and that “weaponized” humor was used to defuse family tension (05:03).
  • The dynamic at home was markedly different from public personas:

    “The fights will be different, the disagreements will be different, the language, the tone. That’s where I find the comedy, in the rawness of how we interact with people.”
    (Dan Levy, 08:05)

• Comedy & Melancholy

  • On being an outward-facing performer but relishing the comfort of “being boring” at home:

    “There’s something relaxing about being a boring person.”
    (Dan Levy, 06:13)

Solitude vs. Sociality

• Both Levy and Blanks discuss the value of solitude, which Levy views as a space for honest emotional processing—contrasting the pressure of being “on” for others at work or in public (10:38).
• The restorative power of low-key, “boring” moments and time alone is affirmed by both (07:01, 10:38).

Fashion as Self-Understanding and Communication

• From Red Carpets to Drawing Gowns

  • Levy’s first inspiration was the spectacle of women’s glamour at events like the Oscars, which greatly outshone the pedestrian menswear available in 1990s Toronto (20:33).
  • “I used to draw gowns,” he reveals (22:10), humorously connecting this to his parents’ early suspicions about his sexuality.

• On Costume as Storytelling in Schitt’s Creek

  • Clothing functioned as a narrative tool to show, not tell:

    “On Schitt’s, costume was everything because it allowed us to constantly remind an audience that this family came from money, without having to write too much of the snobbiness or elitism.”
    (Dan Levy, 22:38)

  • The show’s commitment to authenticity meant tracking down genuine high-end garments from consignment and vintage sources to reflect pre-scandal affluence (24:23).
  • Character Moira Rose’s style, inspired by Daphne Guinness, represented “personalizing Moira’s interpretation” rather than direct imitation (26:34).

• Fashion for the Introvert

  • Levy describes style as both a means of self-exploration and as a social tool:

    “If you’re fearful of social situations and you appear to be somebody who maybe would invite conversation, then maybe subconsciously that’s a way of trying to build a bridge.”
    (Dan Levy, 39:35)

Clothing, Body Image, and Packing Rituals

• Levy candidly discusses body image anxieties, learning to dress for his “broad shoulders and...titties,” and the necessity of accepting one’s shape (31:59).
• Packing for travel is described as “compulsive, impulsive, and meticulous” (32:50), highlighting the anxiety of wanting enough options for in-the-moment decisions (33:07).

Fashion, Identity, and Judgement

• Fashion, especially post-coming out, became a field for Levy’s self-exploration:

  “Clothes have been such an outlet for me to explore who I am. Testing things.”
  (Dan Levy, 36:53)

• He critiques the negative culture around judging people’s attempts at self-expression on social media:

  “Whether it works or it doesn’t, you’ve tried something. And that can’t be criticized. It’s a vulnerable thing.”
  (Dan Levy, 38:13)

Stylists, Red Carpets, and the Evolution of Fashion Culture

• Levy discusses the evolving role of stylists—from assembling creative, unique looks to sometimes just recreating runway ensembles for brand consistency (45:05-47:02).
• He expresses nostalgia for 90s-style celebrity dressing, where a star’s personal wardrobe and styling choices felt more authentic (48:07).
• Trust and taste overlap are vital in a good stylist-client relationship—stylists should push but not impose (48:26 & 48:52).

Notable Collaborations and Creative Processes

• On the short Loewe film with Jonathan Anderson, Levy credits Anderson’s humor and willingness to subvert expectations:

  “He’s never in the moment. He’s always a footstep or a couple footsteps ahead of the moment.”
  (Dan Levy, 53:29)

• In Schitt’s Creek’s iconic wedding scene, the kilted Thom Browne ensemble and Moira’s McQueen-and-Pope homage are dissected for their narrative and aesthetic impact (68:11–72:28).

• Music and Writing Partnerships

  • Music is central for Levy—Peaches’ involvement in Big Mistakes was decided by the emotional fit, even before writing began:

    “Music allows me to conjure scenes and ideas and vibes.”
    (Dan Levy, 60:04)

  • Rachel Sennott co-wrote Big Mistakes with Levy, providing generational contrast and comedic specificity (64:04–66:55).

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Memorable Quotes

• On comedic observation:

  “I love excavating comedy from that sort of connective tissue.”
  (Dan Levy, 07:34)

• On family acceptance in Schitt’s Creek:

  “I didn’t really know at the time... how revolutionary [the town’s acceptance] would be when reflected out into the world.”
  (Dan Levy, 28:20)

• On high fashion and introversion:

  “I think part of my curiosity around fashion and why I have really kind of pushed the limits, good and bad with what I wear is... a quest to understand myself deeper.”
  (Dan Levy, 36:52)

• On trying and taking fashion risks:

  "It’s a vulnerable thing. I mean, it can, it has, it will. I think, personally speaking, I had to explore in order to find myself. And I don’t regret anything I’ve worn because it’s all been fun. It’s all been in fun, and what’s the point in regretting or criticizing play."
  (Dan Levy, 38:13)

• On the power of creative risk:

  “When you give an audience something they don’t know that they want and they have to catch up and they have to discover because you’re going to get a much deeper sense of loyalty out of somebody who feels like they found something special, then consuming something they wanted and moving on.”
  (Dan Levy, 57:46)

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Notable Segments & Timestamps

• Opening, Personal Style & Eyewear (00:18–03:23)
• Fashion & Family: Early Critiques & Shopping (12:32–15:58)
• Comedy, Mood & Boring as Comfort (05:03–07:01)
• Solitude, Group Dynamics & Resetting (10:05–12:15)
• Costume as Character in Schitt’s Creek (22:38–26:50)
• Packing Anxiety & Clothing Rituals (32:50–35:09)
• Body Image, Gender, and Coming Out (29:26–31:59; 36:52)
• Instagram, Fashion Judgment, Vulnerability (37:42–38:44)
• Stylists and Evolving Red Carpet Fashion (45:04–48:52)
• On Collaborative Creativity & Loewe Short Film (53:29–56:54)
• Music and Writing for TV (Big Mistakes) (59:32–63:29)
• Iconic Schitt’s Creek Wedding & Moira’s Looks (68:11–73:11)

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Tone and Takeaways

The episode unfolds with warmth, intellectual curiosity, and a sense of two insiders relishing the chance to psychoanalyze fashion, identity, and creativity. Levy balances playful stories with moments of vulnerability, making the case for fashion as both armor and invitation, and for comedy as a byproduct of deep observation. Listeners leave with a sense that style is a living language—at once personal and communal—and that what we wear is never just about clothes.

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For further updates and bonus content, follow the show at:

• fashionneurosis.com
• @fashioneurosis_bellafreud

Transcript

[Tim Blanks]

Hi, come in. Welcome to Fashion Neurosis. Dan Levy.

[Dan Levy]

I'm so happy to be here.

[Tim Blanks]

Can you tell me what you're wearing today and why you chose these particular clothes?

[Dan Levy]

Well, I'm kind of in a. In a state of flux in my life right now. I'm just. I've just moved into a place here, so I had to rummage through what I had in my suitcase and I. This is a sweater from the Row. These are some leather pants from Versace and shoes from the same collection. Daria Vitale's sort of collection of Versace, which I loved. And then I suppose I'm wearing a watch from my dear friend Trevor, who gave it to me when I was very young and it was the most valuable thing I'd ever owned. Yeah.

[Tim Blanks]

And where are your glasses from?

[Dan Levy]

These are Celine, actually.

[Tim Blanks]

Hedy's Celine?

[Dan Levy]

I think so. Not Michaels? Ah, I can't be sure. I've had them for a little bit. I don't know. Actually, they're nice. I like the shape. I was going for kind of a monochrome thing.

[Tim Blanks]

Do you ever change glasses?

[Dan Levy]

I change glasses every day.

[Tim Blanks]

Really?

[Dan Levy]

Yeah, I probably have hundreds.

[Tim Blanks]

But are they all vaguely similar with a heavy frame, a dark frame?

[Dan Levy]

No, I've started to get into wireframes.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, my God, you're so daring.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah, I've been a very. I've been an acetate lover for a very long time.

[Tim Blanks]

What does that mean?

[Dan Levy]

Acetate's the. Like the plastic.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, right. Okay.

[Dan Levy]

I used to make glasses.

[Tim Blanks]

Yes, of course.

[Dan Levy]

So I just. I don't know what it is. I think because I'm tied to them, I don't like wearing contact lenses. So when you have to wear an accessory every day of your life and you care about clothes, you can't. It's impossible for a single pair to. To suit every thing you wear every day. So I like to have options. I like to kind of accessorize the day's look, I guess, with the appropriate eyewear.

[Tim Blanks]

I think that shows incredible strength of character. Cause I could never do. I settle on something and my shifts are so microscopic, no one notices except me or.

[Dan Levy]

Well, sometimes that's the best part is when you're the only one that notices.

[Tim Blanks]

Well, I think it shows strength of character. So I'm impressed.

[Dan Levy]

I have trunks full of them. I got these custom trunks with drawers that pull out.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, my God.

[Dan Levy]

To store them all. Yeah.

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[Dan Levy]

What's up, y'? All? I'm Skylar Diggins, seven time WNBA all star, Olympic gold medalist and mom. And I'm Cassidy Hubbard, host and reporter

[Tim Blanks]

for nearly 20 years, covering the biggest names and stories in sports and mom.

[Dan Levy]

And this is and mom. A community for athletes, game changers and moms of all kinds. Dropping May 14th, tap in with us.

[Tim Blanks]

You're the multi award winning and instantly recognizable star of Schitt's Creek, the series that kept many of us sane during lockdown. You wrote it with your father, Eugene Levy, who also stars in the show. And you talked about creating a distance from him when you were younger because of all the attention he attracted. And as the child of a kind of more bohemian person myself, I wondered, did you ever want him to be a more conventionally funny man?

[Dan Levy]

I don't know, actually. That's a great question. I don't think I've ever really thought about it. I've just kind of accepted him, I suppose, for. I mean, a lot of comedians are not very funny behind closed doors. I think when it's your job, you don't feel that same desire to kind of perform. Some do. Someone like Marty Short is unbelievably, brilliantly, otherworldly, hysterically funny and is at all times. My dad is somebody who I think is quite serious a lot of the time, but would weaponize the humor. Growing up, whenever he needed us to laugh in times when we were quite angry with him.

[Tim Blanks]

God, it's so interesting that because you write brilliant comedy and you know, you were just saying about how comedians also suffer from quite often from low mood. And I wondered if that was your experience as well.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah, I mean, I, it depends. I mean, I think if you ask my friends, they might tell a different story. But I feel like when you are, when you have to be kind of outward facing for your job. I see my personal life kind of as a, as a space to be more low key and less performative, I suppose, which I think is probably kind of boring really. I think there's something relaxing about being a boring person.

[Tim Blanks]

I love boring moments. They're bomb. And they're kind of a neural reset.

[Dan Levy]

Exactly.

[Tim Blanks]

There's this series on the Radio 4 here called the Archers, which is the most boring thing on earth. And I kind of medicate myself with that. And sometimes it's really exciting because, you know, it's so tiny, the things that happen. But also I think being a comedian and being someone who can write and be funny, you have to understand, maybe you understand the tragedy of life more deeply and that's why you can be funny.

[Dan Levy]

I do. I think for me, I'm a very curious person when it comes to the tissue that exists in human dynamics. I'm so fascinated by the way that we interact with each other and how we talk to one another and what we don't say to one another. And I think there's something very funny about, at least for me. I love excavating comedy from that sort of connective tissue.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And often I have a preoccupation with exploring the lives of people that are at home when the door is shut. And I think particularly family dynamics, like if we think about our families, obviously this is generalization. But I think how we operate with each other behind closed doors versus the faces we put on when we leave the house, we're generally speaking much better behaved as a family dynamic in public than I think most people are behind closed doors. We'll talk to our family members differently. The fights will be different, the disagreements will be different, the language, the tone. That's where I find the comedy, in the rawness of how we interact with people. But I think in order to understand it and be able to articulate it, I almost need to just observe it and not be involved in it. In a way, going back to being the boring person when I'm not sort of working. My parents used to always. I used to be a VJ on MTV and my parents used to. I would come home after doing my work. We had a live hour of television that I would do every day.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

And I would come to my parents house for dinner and they would always wonder why they couldn't get the guy that was on TV showing up to dinner. That I was far more low key and way more interesting on camera.

[Tim Blanks]

So also low key is totally intriguing. So it's never boring. Boring is something very different.

[Dan Levy]

My parents may beg to differ, but I think I took it always as a sign of ease.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

When you can be disarmed and quiet, it's a sign of comfort, I think.

[Tim Blanks]

Well, I spend quite a lot of time on my own and I. And my mood is very dippy and when it's dipping Down. I think if someone was here, I'd have to make a kind of thing about it. And because I'm on my own, it will just. It will just go. And I'm so glad about that because sometimes it's hard to know how to control that dip. When someone is a witness, you feel or I find I have to qualify it or indulge it.

[Dan Levy]

I think that's fascinating. I've been alone a lot of my life and really enjoy it. And you do get to work through your moods because you don't have anyone to answer. So answer to in terms of those low moments.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

No one's holding up a mirror to you saying, get your shit together or

[Tim Blanks]

even are you okay?

[Dan Levy]

Are you okay? I love that my mind went straight to get your shit together and yours went to are you okay? And so you do learn in a way to like self medicate or problem solve or adjust or simply let it ride. And then I find at work, when I'm responsible for, you know, 175 to 200 people, I have to almost change or be hyper aware of the fact that I love solitude. It's a different relationship outside of just being alone.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And it's tough. It's hard. I find it actually quite exhausting.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. Cause there's a. Some question in some book somewhere about how do you reset alone or with other people? And it defines you as some terrible personality disorder. I can't remember which one.

[Dan Levy]

But mine would be, I guess with friends.

[Tim Blanks]

I think mine would be without friends.

[Dan Levy]

But I spend a lot of time alone.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

But I'll come home at the end of a workday and get on the phone with a friend.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And just talk about nothing. And I find it to be the kind of greatest palate cleanser.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. I love doing that. And what was the first piece of clothing you became obsessed with as a child to sort of compound your identity?

[Dan Levy]

Well, there's the stories that have been told to me and then the memories that I have. My parents speak about my relationship to clothes in ways that I can't remember. Apparently. I would change clothes two to three times a day as a young person. So when I was in elementary school, so, you know, kindergarten to grades, I guess three or four, I would go to school in a. I don't know how else to describe it. It wasn't a look, but I would go to school in clothes, an ensemble of something. Come home at lunch, change, go back to school in different clothes.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

Come home and change again. And this was a Pretty consistent thing throughout my younger, like, life that I don't remember. But my parents remember quite specifically, and I was quite critical of their clothes.

[Tim Blanks]

Interesting.

[Dan Levy]

I remember my. My dad tells a story one time of he was leaving to go and work away for a few months, and I. He was wearing jeans, a belt, a shirt, a tie and a blazer. And I kind of looked him up and down and I said, from the belt up, great. From the belt down, gross.

[Tim Blanks]

God.

[Dan Levy]

And I think in my head I was looking at kind of the formality of the upper half of his body and then looking at the jeans and feeling so disrupted by the casual nature of the denim that I suppose my young brain couldn't compute the mix and matching of that time. I mean, it was the 90s, so, you know, a shirt and tie and some jeans was sort of. Now I live for it. But apparently I was quite critical of my.

[Tim Blanks]

Did he change?

[Dan Levy]

I know he has, and I also ran into him rush back into the. I don't think he did change, no. I think he kind of looked at his child and said, what did I raise? But I've run into my parents, friends who I hadn't seen in a long time, and said, the last time I. I heard your voice, you were on the other end of the phone asking your parents what they were wearing at a dinner party that I was at.

[Tim Blanks]

God, that's so.

[Dan Levy]

What a touchy, precocious little brat.

[Tim Blanks]

Stefano Pilati. He said that he changed a lot and he wanted his mother to change and was horrified when she came to school not in the clothes that they'd gone shopping to buy together when he was 10 or whatever. And I think there's something wonderful about being held to your aesthetic account by your child.

[Dan Levy]

I. I've always loved and appreciated what clothes do to a person. I think I've always wanted to shop. I've always. My teenage years. Part of why I started working at such a young age was to buy the clothes because my, you know, my parents don't have a real interest in fashion. And I wasn't, you know, I wasn't taken shopping that often or as often as I'd like as a kid because from my parents standpoint, it was a kind of a practical exercise. And now I have a problem. Now I shop too much. And I think it's all kind of in reaction to the formative years of my life being not having access to something I was so fascinated by. And now that I do, and now that I have the means to kind of go out and buy these leather pants. I can't stop.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. It is such a compelling and wonderful thing. I mean, I seem to have like the opposite. I grew up with very little and had. I think I sort of got entrenched in poverty thinking, thinking I couldn't have anything. And I remember seeing this guy with a turtleneck, a black turtleneck, when I was in my teens and he said he got it from Simpsons and I thought, my God, I wonder how much it cost. Like, was it £2,000? How do you get one of the. It just seemed out of my league. I never imagined I could own anything unless it was from a jumble sale or something. But.

[Dan Levy]

But it must have. It must have. I mean, and then to find your way into fashion, I can't imagine how much that would have inspired the creative.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Processes of saying, okay, well, I'm fascinated by fashion, but I don't have access to it. So you kind of need to go at it from a real fundamental place, I would imagine.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, no, I can. It sort of forced me to be more extrovert than I felt able to be. And I could do it for someone else to wear. I could have this image of someone and this is how they should look and be behind the scenes.

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[Mitch (Podcast Host)]

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[Tim Blanks]

And. But who did you first see that you thought I'd like to. I. That I want some of that. I. I want to look like that. I

[Dan Levy]

menswear. I Think has always. I mean, I think I've always been more fascinated by the way that women dress.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I think the earliest memories I have are probably of, you know, watching the Oscars. Red carpets.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And seeing a level of glamour that I would never see on the day to day in Toronto, Canada. This is not to disparage the style of Toronto, but you just don't have at the time. At least we didn't have. I wasn't exposed to anywhere near that kind of glamour and style and fashion. The boldness of it. So I think my earliest memories of looking at people and thinking, gosh, that's fabulous, is actresses.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. For some reason I thought you. It never occurred to me that it wouldn't be how a woman was dressing just for the. The level of glamour and accessorization that you're so active.

[Dan Levy]

Because to have access to sort of. I love to look back when it comes to menswear at actors from the, you know, 50s and 60s. I think there was such a amazing kind of timeless quality to the way that men dressed back then. But I didn't have that access as a kid.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

All I had was what I was looking at. And menswear was quite boring if you didn't know where to look. So I just. I looked at the women. I used to draw gowns.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, really?

[Dan Levy]

Yeah. And I like. The jig is up. When it came to my parents. I think they knew from a very early age that I may have been a homosexual.

[Tim Blanks]

You wore all these outlandish outfits in Schitt's Creek. Your character. And how did you know that dressing high fashion would make the repressed nature of your character be so clear? It's like contraintuitive.

[Dan Levy]

But I love costume. I love what costume can do as a writer. I love the power of costume design because it allows for characters to say things that you don't have to write.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And there is nothing worse than expositional dialogue. What does that mean, expositional? A character telling you that they're in distress or telling you that they're anxious or telling you that they're worried. On Schitt's costume was everything because it allowed us to constantly remind an audience that this family came from money without having to write too much of the snobbiness or elitism it was. We were just able to show it.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And any time in storytelling, you know, film and television that you can show something and not tell it, you are winning.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And so it became very clear from. From an early. The early days of Putting the show together, that the clothes were going to be, you know, almost just as valuable as the words coming out of these people's mouths. And I really value authenticity of world building. So I wanted the clothes to be real. I didn't want to string some pearls around Moira's neck and say, well, this woman is wealthy. I wanted her to dress like she had the money. And in order to do that, you need to make sure that the clothes are real.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I wanted pieces that somebody at home who paid attention to fashion could see and think, ah, wow, okay. That's the kind of woman this person is. And we had no money. So the big challenge with shit's was how do we find the clothes? And it forced me to shop all year round, on sale, on consignment, on, you know, vintage, anything I could find. Vestiere Realreal. Because we couldn't afford to buy them off the rack, nor did I want to, because this family had lost their money. So the clothes had to actually come from prior to their scandal.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So that was also something that you had to keep in mind, which was, okay, well, if we're going to go down the path of Balenciaga, I think at the time, Alex Wang was at Balenciaga, so it was like we had to go to Nicola. We had to pull from the designers that Moira would have shopped at before she lost it all.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And as a fashion lover, this was the greatest thrill working with my costume designer, Deborah Hanson, on that show, because I got to touch these garments that I've been obsessed with my whole life and never had access to so selfishly. The high fashion elements of the show really kind of were a direct result of my desire to play with clothes that I never had a reason to before. And also, Catherine came in with such a clear idea of how she wanted to dress that it was about facilitating her vision.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And she had referenced Daphne Guinness.

[Tim Blanks]

I was so fascinated by that.

[Dan Levy]

And the minute that she gave me that reference, I mean, how fabulous.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I knew exactly where to go. And so it just became, you know, not impersonating Daphne Guinness, but personalizing Moira's interpretation of Daphne Guinness.

[Tim Blanks]

I mean, complete genius.

[Dan Levy]

And it was heaven.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And Catherine was the ultimate kind of. She could wear clothes so easily, and we were finding complicated, heavy clothes. And she would put them on. She would put on sort of a sculptural piece of sort of Comme des Garcons and wear it so easily and effortlessly. It was a real. Working with her in our fittings was one of my fondest memories of the show and some very fond memories of. Of Catherine. But she just had. She got such a kick out of. How far could we push it?

[Tim Blanks]

I mean, I've never seen anything pushed so far.

[Dan Levy]

Listen, it's the. What did they say to you? Should always take off the last thing you put on or take off one thing that you. Oh yes. Before you leave the house to kind of just reduce the impact of whatever it is you're wearing. With Moira Rose, it was the total opposite. It was. Can we put a hat on it?

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Can we put a necklace on it? So much brooch on it.

[Tim Blanks]

And there's something so touching about the other characters in the little town who never even mention what she's wearing or what you're wearing. They're just so accepting of the family. It's kind of really moving.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah, I know, it was. It's interesting. I mean the acceptance of it all and then costuming them was a whole other world. But I didn't really know it at the time when we made the decision to have the town be as accepting as it was. Kind of how revolutionary that would be when reflected out into the world.

[Tim Blanks]

I suppose it's that thing you were saying that nothing needs to be said, it's just done. There it is. And you get it so much more than some sort of.

[Dan Levy]

Well, I. Yeah. I don't learn when I'm being told how to think or how to feel. But if I'm exposed to something, I. That's the education.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And it really worked. I suppose it did.

[Tim Blanks]

Because when you were growing up and entering puberty, did you use clothes as a way of disguising how you felt about yourself? And did you have any hang ups about your body?

[Dan Levy]

Ew. Yeah. Oh yeah. But I also didn't have access to the clothes. So I would go shopping with my mom and get a pair of jeans and a sweater and a T shirt when I really wanted the coat, the shoes, the belts, another pair of pants, another sweater. Another sweater. Another sweater. So I didn't have the ability really to even express myself like sartorially speaking. So I had to make do that one sweater had to be the sweater and the T shirt had to be the T shirt. Cause I didn't have a wardrobe to kind of play with.

[Tim Blanks]

What was your question about disguise?

[Dan Levy]

I got hung up on the trauma for a second. Disguise?

[Tim Blanks]

Yes. Like, did you use clothes to kind of.

[Dan Levy]

Well, yeah. The men in my family tend to be a bit top heavy. So we have like our legs Stays quite slim. But if we don't watch ourselves, it can easily turn into a bit of a humpty Dumpty shape. Like an eggy top, Like a heavy top part with little twig legs that stick out. So we get bellies and we get breasts. And I think I'm to this day constantly battling a B or C cup breast. I have to keep them in very good shape. Otherwise I should wear a bra.

[Tim Blanks]

Well, I think it's better than the other way around.

[Dan Levy]

I think really all I want is that, like, I just.

[Tim Blanks]

But then with. With dumpy legs and. And right.

[Dan Levy]

With the thin legs. I don't know.

[Tim Blanks]

Thin legs are great.

[Dan Levy]

Well, I could never heddy Slimmen's Dior, for example. I don't want that thin. But I couldn't. Clothes don't hang off my chest in the way that they do. His aesthetic.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I've always loved that aesthetic, but I can never wear it. I'm broad shoulders and I have titties. Well, so you have to dress sort of. I've come to accept that you have to. You can't fight your body.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

You have to dress for your shape. So a big comfy sweatshirt in a dark color will kind of.

[Tim Blanks]

And a good shoulder is an amazing asset. You know, you can do. You can go anywhere. You can cut suede through the body.

[Dan Levy]

Exactly. And Anthony Vaccarello at St. Laurent right now is doing a shoulder that really works for me.

[Tim Blanks]

I love his shoulder.

[Dan Levy]

It's a nice, strong, sharp shoulder which also allows for the front of the blazer to sit flat. So it's created my dream sort of silhouette.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Despite these things,

[Tim Blanks]

because you've described your suitcase packing as compulsive, impulsive, and meticulous.

[Dan Levy]

So three words that shouldn't go together.

[Tim Blanks]

And yet I wondered, can you define what the fear around packing is?

[Dan Levy]

I don't know what it is. It will take me ages, I think. Because you know why? Because I don't. I don't put clothes together in advance.

[Tim Blanks]

No. I'm the same.

[Dan Levy]

I like to get dressed sort of day of and throw things on. But in order to do that when you're traveling, you have to give yourself the options to be able to shop your own closet. I have friends that will put full head to toe looks together for every day and every night. And every day and every night they will wear those clothes and they'll look fantastic. And it's quite economical. I have to overstuff in order to decide in the morning.

[Tim Blanks]

So that's where the impulsive element fits into the restrained element.

[Dan Levy]

That's right. But the meticulousness is simply the care I take in selecting the clothes. And then you get to the place and it none of it works. Or it's raining.

[Tim Blanks]

At least you have choice. Cuz I'm the same.

[Dan Levy]

I have choice of things that often don't work. Because in overthinking the whole process, I'm left with a suitcase of just stuff and I don't know what to do with it. I'm getting better though. I'm working through it.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, I find packing pretty traumatizing.

[Dan Levy]

I But they are folded.

[Tim Blanks]

Yes. Folding is.

[Dan Levy]

I can't do. I have friends that just will throw things into a suitcase and zip it up.

[Tim Blanks]

I that I thought that was only something for movies from a movie. Always think no one would do that. But you've seen someone do that.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah, I've witnessed it firsthand on a trip.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

And it's actually burned into my memory. The clothes being thrown into the bag, piling.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

And then the top going down, sitting on it and zipping it up.

[Tim Blanks]

That's quite impressive really, isn't it?

[Dan Levy]

I suppose. Depends on what your idea of impressive is. But yeah, I guess in defying everything that I perceive to be right in this world, it's impressive.

[Tim Blanks]

Because you describe yourself as an introvert, yet you draw attention to yourself through your love of fashion. And what's the security that fashion, high fashion brings you?

[Dan Levy]

I think as a gay person, when you spend a lot of your life trying to assimilate or trying to be a version of yourself that accommodates culture so as to avoid bullying or feeling, I suppose like ostracized or othered, particularly in school, what it does is delay your understanding of who you are. And so the minute that I was able to A come out of the closet and B make an income that allowed me to responsibly shop for myself. I think part of my curiosity around fashion and why I have really kind of pushed the limits, good and bad with what I wear is I think based on a quest to understand myself deeper.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Because I only came out of the closet at 19 and I think to not be yourself for the first 20 years of your life leaves you wondering who you really are in a way. And I don't know if I'll ever fully get there, but clothes have been such an outlet for me to explore who I am. Testing things.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I mean my glasses have gotten really, really big and then they've gotten really really small and then they've Gotten really, really big again. And I think a lot of it is just a wanting to be interesting. And I think it helps you to get there in a way.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

You know, and that's why I have. I don't love the culture of judging the way that people dress. And I think there's this whole wave of kind of Instagram and TikTok, you know, voices who spend their days kind of criticizing people's clothes. Because I think whether it works or it doesn't, you've tried something.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And that can't be criticized. It's a vulnerable thing. I mean, it can, it has, it will. I think, personally speaking, I had to explore in order to find myself. And I don't regret anything I've worn because it's all been fun. It's all been in fun, and what's the point in regretting or criticizing play.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. It's so interesting because as a shy person and describing yourself as introverted, it's like. It's almost like you throw out a. I always think of that thing. Sir Francis Drake putting his cloak down for Elizabeth I so she could walk over the water. And it's those moments where something. There's a lily pad and you can sort of spring onto it and explore how can you bear to be out here, seen like this? And. And it's good for the courageous part of oneself. And clothes are so great for that. You know, they can. They are your allies. Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I also feel like. I think now that I'm sort of lying down and having this conversation, I wonder whether part of it dressing slightly outside of my comfort zone or the experimentation with getting dressed had something to do with. If you're fearful of social situations and you appear to be somebody who maybe would invite conversation, then maybe subconsciously that's a way of trying to build a bridge. Knowing that I. When. I mean, it was much worse when I was younger. But if you are not the person to go up to somebody and say hi at a party, if you look a certain way, perhaps subconsciously I was hoping it would invite someone to come up to me.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Or at least not pass judgment. If you look cool, then even if nobody talks to you, there's an idea that perhaps you're not being judged. I think a lot of this, now that I'm again lying down here, has to do with judgment. Being ridiculed and bullied for being gay growing up.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. And I suppose making a. Having a good look is more likely to invite a good conversation or someone to say something.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah.

[Tim Blanks]

And Find. And you find a kindred spirit.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah. And that's inviting a kind of person who would appreciate the vibe, I guess, because I didn't have the ability to. To be sort of actively social.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So it's finding the tribes of people by way of how we look, I guess.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I don't know whether that's a good or a bad thing.

[Tim Blanks]

Well, I think it's a device that works because you recognize it. I recognize. You know, we do recognize that. And sometimes, like you described, the clothes do the talking and they're the preamble and then suddenly you recognize that you have a friend there or they make it clear and something's happening and that's an exciting moment.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah.

[Tim Blanks]

It's also such a Can be.

[Dan Levy]

The way that people dress is such a fun way of sort of quietly psychoanalyzing a person as well. I mean, not judgment, but just trying to understand how a person works. It's a very fun game of creating a character in your head.

[Tim Blanks]

It's true. I was thinking this morning about. I seem to be dressing more and more like my own psychoanalyst who is quite low key, but he wears Margiela V necks. And so I thought, okay, that's, you know, it's distinct.

[Dan Levy]

Finding yourself, mirroring.

[Tim Blanks]

And you're such a good dresser. But how do you feel about being naked?

[Dan Levy]

I'd love to sit here and say I walk around naked all the time, but I don't. I've gotten much more comfortable with it. But it's not a com. It's not my comfort place, I think, because I have insecurities about my body. You know, I don't know whether that's a genetically kind of predisposed thing in terms of how we relate to our bodies without clothes on or whether this is a. A learned thing. But I. Yeah, I don't know. But I'm not. It's not my favorite. I much prefer a T shirt and sweatpants around the house.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. I'm the same. I mean, even naked, I have to have something on or it doesn't feel naked enough. It feels just like exposed.

[Dan Levy]

Something incomplete.

[Tim Blanks]

Yes.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah.

[Tim Blanks]

Because how do you feel about stylists? Because and being a vehicle for high fashion, extreme fashion looks. And I. I think of high fashion statement needs a perfect blend of insecurity and confidence to carry it off. Like the looks that Alexander Skarsgrd has been wearing. And you can't tell whether he's ridiculing himself or congratulating himself, but it's very good And I wonder.

[Dan Levy]

I like how kind of provocative and playful he is.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Feels like he's kind of taking the piss out of every occasion while at the same time celebrating fashion.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So I think that's why people have responded so well to his red carpet looks, because he has this playful, really kind of effortless way that he carries himself in the world. And I wish I had that kind of stature to. To experiment in that kind of way. But stylists, I think it's. I feel like we're in a tricky place right now, because a lot of what's happening is a designer will send a look, and that look is, you know, look 17 from the Runway. And so the stylist is now procuring a look and putting it on the client. But in the process of brand identity preservation, it's almost, in a way, removing the ability to style. So I think you have to find a stylist who is willing to play with vintage and potentially ruffle up a look that a designer wants in completion and sort of beg for forgiveness afterwards, because otherwise you just end up wearing exactly what has already been shown, which at times can be great. There are looks on a Runway that I'll see and say, like, absolutely. Give me the whole thing, top to tail. But I think I was having this conversation with my friend Michael Ryder, who's now at.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, yeah, he's at Celine.

[Dan Levy]

Yeah. Designing it. Celine. And I think part of what. I've known him for 20 plus years, and he's the greatest human being. Greatest. And he loves. Loves clothes, loves a shop, loves to experiment. And I think what we were talking about was his desire to make clothes that can be styled as opposed to looks that need to be honored in order for his vision to be complete. And we. It was. It was really interesting to hear him talk about that, because I would love to return to kind of the way that celebrities dressed in the 90s when stylists were brought on for red carpet looks, but the people themselves kind of had to fend for themselves most of the time.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

I think that's why we're looking back at all of these amazing looks from celebrities in the 90s that were kind of paparazzi in all of their own clothes, and they look incredible.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

You can tell now when someone has been styled in a paparazzi shot.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

You know, and it's finding. I find that in working with a stylist, you need that sensibility overlap. You need to trust that the taste is there between the two of you, but that they are also going to push you in a direction that excites you and allows you to kind of experiment in ways that you normally wouldn't.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

It's an interesting time right now for all of that.

[Tim Blanks]

It is so true because I went to see Kim Gordon. She was here playing, doing a concert and she looked amazing. And she was wearing this white semi transparent skirt that had a kind of sheen on it and like a black satin cheongsam that was open so it made an asymmetrical V and this blonde hair and these boots and I couldn't take. You know, we were just spellbound and went with these young kids as well. And afterwards I was like, where did you get the skirt? And she got it in real to. What's it called?

[Dan Levy]

The real real.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. And it was an old something. But she looked my favorite combination somehow like punk rock haute couture. Just so, so elegant and so sort of like, you know, she could just conquer the world.

[Dan Levy]

She's also someone who can wear clothes so well.

[Tim Blanks]

She has the most beautiful body and you could see her legs through the skirt.

[Dan Levy]

Right.

[Tim Blanks]

You just couldn't stop watching her legs and what they were doing. And there was these music and she's. Yeah, she's really something. She's so fantastic. And it goes straight to the heart when you see, you get like. I love the Alexander Skarsgrd because it's like he's very at ease on the tightrope. And that's quite a tight. It's a narrow place. I think he can do it.

[Dan Levy]

And a lot of that too is I think Harry Lambert's the clash of the two of them. His. Harry's sort of love of play and camp and Alex's like height and I suppose kind of sex appeal.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. And his authority, like someone from Tolstoy or something. One of those sexy soldiers.

[Dan Levy]

It's fun to see when it works.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

That kind of stylist and client dynamic. It's, it's, it's really. It can be a really fantastic thing.

[Tim Blanks]

And if you fancy someone and don't like what they're wearing, does it kill your attraction?

[Dan Levy]

No. Cuz I tend to go face first if we're talking like physical attraction. So if the face is good, I don't really care what they're wearing. It helps. I mean, I think it definitely helps that if a person has amazing style, it certainly enhances. But I kind of go like eyes down.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I almost. I don't need someone I'm dating to be fashionable. It would be Nice. But I. I almost find some of the people I found most attractive to have horrible style but incredible beauty.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And that beauty doesn't have to be conventional in any way. I mean, it's. Some of the most beautiful people I've. I've ever met are not conventionally attractive, but there's something about them. There's an aura to. To the way that they carry themselves that is like, intoxicating.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And they've had horrible style and I've kind of loved. I've kind of. It's. It's been a turn on almost.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. It's so interesting that because you're. You're very close friends with Jonathan Anderson and who's now the creative director All Over Dior and his own brand, jw. And I watched this brilliant promo film that you made when he was at Loewe, all about how to pronounce Loewe. And how do you know what the appeal of a brand is, including the appeal of not knowing how to pronounce their name?

[Dan Levy]

I think what Jonathan is so brilliant at is. Is knowing what people. I don't want to say knowing what people want, but it's knowing what people will want. Because he's never in the moment. He's always a footstep or a couple footsteps ahead of the moment. And there's a sense of play and a sense of humor. I think what I love about Jonathan as a person and as a kind of creative, is that he has a sense of humor about it all.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

He's an incredibly serious person when it comes to the work, but the work has play. And I think in with Loewe, we were having dinner and he. We were kind of discussing collaborating in some kind of way. And he was telling me what. What, in an ideal world, what they would want to do. It would be a kind of short film that would help audiences or help culture understand the pronunciation better. And I pitched him the spelling bee idea over the dinner. And it was like two weeks later I got a call saying, we're going to do it so good, let's write it, let's put it together. And we didn't end up making it for quite some time after. But again, for a designer like that to trust the vision and to see the value in it is so great because fashion can be incredibly serious.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I think what worked about that short film, I call it a short film.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, it was a short film.

[Dan Levy]

Elongated advertisement was that it was funny and yet at the same time it was stylish. It had a Vibe. Aubrey and I were really fun together.

[Tim Blanks]

I loved it.

[Dan Levy]

And the overall effect of it, I found so successful.

[Tim Blanks]

It was, I mean, a masterpiece because it had everything. It had the authority, you. The test of fashion. Then how people are prepared to go to the lengths to get it wrong in order to be part of fashion. And why all those kind of sort of judgy sounding things are so inclusive. Because you're all part of this club and you all get it. And you. I mean, I used. I never said the word loewe. I had no idea how you say it. It's like so useful.

[Dan Levy]

And yet when you find out how to say it, it's such an easy adjustment.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So to be aware of the cultural conversation around the name, the fact that nobody really. Outside of fashion, nobody really knew how to pronounce it.

[Tim Blanks]

Even inside fashion.

[Dan Levy]

Even inside fashion. And it was just. I thought it was such a. I just thought it was such a great idea on his part to lean into that and turn to, you know, us clowns to tell that story.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow. It was a brilliant idea.

[Dan Levy]

And again, like, how great to collaborate with people that you admire.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And love.

[Tim Blanks]

So, Jonathan, it's so true about him. Seeing he sees the idea ahead and he. When he gets behind something, it's a real. There's a real. One of those moments that, you know,

[Dan Levy]

something is give people what they want. And I do think that creatively that's where he and I have really found a common bond. You know, I don't like making television for an audience, despite the fact that we are now in a culture that is algorithmically inclined. Because if I learned anything from the success of Schitt's Creek, nobody saw that coming.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Nobody wanted it. We had to make it on our own. And it wasn't until we showed people something that they didn't know they wanted, that's when hysteria starts. That's when the massive ratings happen. That's when viewer loyalty happens. That's when the real fun starts. When you give an audience something they don't know that they want and they have to catch up and they have to discover because you're going to get a much deeper sense of loyalty out of somebody who feels like they found something special, then consuming something they wanted and moving on.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I do feel like Jonathan is constantly pushing the boundaries of what people want to the point where, you know, I think he said this publicly too. Like at some point he would put something out that he knew would be controversial simply to shake up the audience's expectation of what it is he was saying.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And what it is they want from him, from the brand, from themselves. And I thought that was such a clever way of at times sacrificing the continuity of expectation to just disrupt and see what happened.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And I think that has to be done in entertainment as well, film and television.

[Tim Blanks]

In your new series, Big Mistakes, you asked the legendary fellow Canadian and queer icon Peaches to write the musical score. And how did you know who to bring into the role?

[Dan Levy]

There was only one option, because she's

[Tim Blanks]

a disruptor and a radical. And watching the. You know, watching the episode, suddenly you're reminded you have this kind of emotional. As though you're just flying across the road and along this journey of the characters. And it's so ingenious.

[Dan Levy]

And it was always Peaches, long before we even started writing.

[Tim Blanks]

Really?

[Dan Levy]

Yeah. Cause I always put a playlist together before I work on something because I find that music allows me to conjure scenes and ideas and vibes. And so I'll put these extensive playlists together that I'll listen to over and over and over again. Certain songs I'll listen to, like, 10, 15, 20 times a day because something about the song elicits a visual for me. I'm able to picture a scene come to life by way of a song.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And so music is so formative in the way that I build television.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

And Peaches was. A ton of her music was in the Big Mistakes kind of playlist before I even started writing. And then when we finished the show and had some things to show her, I wrote her a nice little note and just asked and sent her the first two episodes of the show. And she was on board immediately. And we paired her with Nora Kroll Rosenbaum, who was a composer, and the two of them took on her very first scoring job together. And she crushed. It's so exciting. It's so fresh. Yeah, it's really. And it's so her, you know?

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, it is. It's like you get flashes. It's like she breaks through every now and then. And you remember she's there too. And. Yeah, I'm a massive fan.

[Dan Levy]

She's fantastic.

[Tim Blanks]

I made a short film with her, actually, and 2003 with John Malkovich. I made these little fashion films and I can.

[Dan Levy]

I find. Are they online somewhere?

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, they're on my website. Hideous, man. And she's absolutely brilliant.

[Dan Levy]

Wow.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. I remember getting up. She was playing in this club called Trash, but she came on at 2 in the morning, so I went to Bed and got up and went there. And there she was singing Fuck the Pain Away. And I just thought, wow, this is it, you know, it's fantastic. And she's wonderful.

[Dan Levy]

She's wonderful. And such a. Such a excellent collaborator. I mean, for me, it was just about giving her some guidance in terms of the types of sounds I was interested in. The only thing I really said to her was I want the score to feel like a heartbeat.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, yeah, that's so good.

[Dan Levy]

So track the heartbeat throughout the show of our characters and try to match that and try to make the show feel like your music is emulating a kind of heartbeat, a kind of anxiety.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So that it can be trapped. Yeah, it's absolutely chaotic and brilliant and funny as well. And really funny. Yeah. Peaches, again, I'm drawn to people who have self awareness and have a sense of humor about themselves.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, she's.

[Dan Levy]

And yet take themselves seriously. She's not an unserious person, but she can have a laugh. It's the best kind of people.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, she's fantastic. And because your co creator on the writing is Rachel Sennett. Right. The actor and writer, and she seems sort of like a literary version of Peaches, she also kind of uses. Seems to use her way of dressing and her body as a literary device. And I wondered how that came. How did your partnership come about?

[Dan Levy]

I worked with Rachel on a television show called the Idol a couple years ago and I had one scene with her and we really bonded and I thought she was hysterically funny and really sharp and her comedy is so specific. And I was coming up with the idea for the show and I wanted it to be a brother and sister duo. And I always think it's important if you're gonna be writing for a character that is outside of your lived experience, to authenticate it by way of a different voice. And so I invited Rachel in to help me flesh out the character of Morgan and to authenticate the male female dynamic at play in the show. And so we sort of created the show together. She said yes, thank God. And it was interesting because we. We find the same things funny, but our comedy style is different. And there's a generational divide too, which was also in the show. So I thought it was really fascinating to see her eyes on this idea. And I think it brought this kind of vitality. And I don't know, I love her so much and she's a hard worker and we just got along and the writing came so easily. The collaboration was so effortless. Yeah, she's fantastic. And she has earned her success in this industry. She's worked really hard for it and made it look effortless.

[Tim Blanks]

Because your different styles of irreverence are so complementary.

[Dan Levy]

Even in just references, even in the way that we react to crisis, there is a. I find the gener. The. I mean, I sound like a grandfather at this point. The generational divide, as small as it is between mine and the. And Gen. What? I don't even know what I am. What is this? Gen Z Gen?

[Tim Blanks]

I don't know. Everyone's so much 10 years younger.

[Dan Levy]

They're calmer. They tend to be more sort of realized as people. Their priorities are different, their value system is different. They run on different fuel. And that is fascinating when you pair it up. Yeah, no, it is with sort of two characters who. Who are related but generationally divided.

[Tim Blanks]

Such a good. It's just such a good combination. I. I was thrilled to see her name. Fantastic credits. I. That film Shiva Baby, I think some of the best things I've ever seen.

[Dan Levy]

I'll put it on once a year just to. Just to revisit.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And that again, was just a group of really talented people, like students, I

[Tim Blanks]

think, at the time, because Emma, is it.

[Dan Levy]

Emma Seligman, I think was either just

[Tim Blanks]

out of school or a brilliant, brilliant director. Yeah, I love her.

[Dan Levy]

Molly Gordon.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

Fantastic. Yeah.

[Tim Blanks]

And in your wedding scene in Schitt's Creek, you wear a kilt. I was like, oh my God, this is such a beautiful outfit. And then I saw the striped sock, the Thom Brown. So the whole outfit was Thom Browne. And you were wearing my favorite sock in the business. I'm kind of obsessed with socks and

[Dan Levy]

the mismatched sort of one leg strike.

[Tim Blanks]

Marvelous how

[Dan Levy]

the panic around the wedding was both thrilling and terrifying because it was the culmination of the show. I mean, it was all. Was leading to this. And as a show that chose to put its costume department forward in the way that we did, you had to deliver. You had to deliver on what David was going to wear and what Moira was going to wear. And then you had the gag of Alexis buying a white dress that was a wedding dress.

[Tim Blanks]

So good.

[Dan Levy]

Them walking down the aisle looking like they were getting married to each other. At that point, the show was kind of cracking the cultural conversation. And I thought, it has to be the kilt. It just has to be. We have to get that look. We have to get his sort of classic black kilted suit and it. I went to New York for a fitting, I believe, for it.

[Tim Blanks]

Wow.

[Dan Levy]

And they sent it to us and it fit, thankfully. But that was the only thing that was loaned.

[Tim Blanks]

It's so exquisite. I mean, it just did everything. It kind of was. Yeah, it wasn't conventional yet. It had so much.

[Dan Levy]

And it was kind of the sort of. It was the most conservative David had been to that point and still had swerve.

[Tim Blanks]

Totally. Cause the scene, I think the episode before, his shirt, he was wearing a T shirt with a gigantic hand on, almost like Edgar Allan Poe.

[Dan Levy]

It was a sweatshirt.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, it was so good.

[Dan Levy]

That was a Dries Van Noten sweatshirt that we found. And there are all these little Easter eggs that we planted through the clothes of the show. He wears color for the first time in the scene where he's serenaded by Patrick.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And playing with color and how it relates to their black and white sort of costuming was really interesting as well. But, yeah, that kilt suit was fantastic. And then I reached out to Tom to dress me for the Emmys, and we did a matching. I wore to the Emmys a matching gray kilt suit when we won. So, yeah, that look was quite a good luck charm.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

And then Moira, you know, Moira Bishop, I mean, what. What with this sort of Pope's hat that we made. We had that made. She was in. It was McQueen, the gown. And then she had gold knee high Tom Ford stiletto boots on underneath it. And it was spectacular.

[Tim Blanks]

And golden gloves.

[Dan Levy]

And golden gloves and rings and things. And the makeup. The hair and makeup department did such a fantastic job with Catherine on that day. And I just remember looking at the monitor that shot where the curtains open and she walks forward and the look is revealed. And it was like we were emotional. The impact of it. She looked so beautiful. And it was. Moira, in moments of real stakes, always erred on the side of softness. She had the premiere of her show, of her movie, and she went old Hollywood glamour in that champagne gown. And then for the wedding, it was soft. It wasn't aggressive. I mean, the look was out there. But we wanted to give her that generosity of not upstaging her son on his wedding day.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah.

[Dan Levy]

So she did somehow blend into the background.

[Tim Blanks]

I love the idea of wearing a pope's hat, not clothing. That was her.

[Dan Levy]

That was a Catherine o' Hara special. She said, I think I should dress like a Pope. And the minute she said that, we knew exactly what to do.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah, she really brought joy to dressing. She really did.

[Dan Levy]

And I think it changed the way that she dressed too. I think over the six seasons of the show. She learned to experiment with style and she found a fantastic stylist and started to get really playful with her red carpet dressing. And yeah, she's just fantastic.

[Tim Blanks]

So it's so interesting when I heard that she had been influenced by Daphne Guinness and bass semi. You look to her for a character. And Daphne Guinness is also someone incredibly unselfconscious about her body. She wears these extraordinary things. And Izzy Blow was like that too. And I remember Izzy Blow showing up in the south of France where we were all staying on holiday. And she was wearing McQueen lace ripped dress and stilettos. And it was, you know, in the middle of the afternoon in the blazing sun and you could see fabulous. Her body was like as it was made of rubber and there was no. It was as if she didn't have a body. She paid no attention to it. And there it was, this marvelous vehicle, this thing. And it was the same. Daphne's like that and then Catherine o'. Hara. Just my favorite costume, I think of her outfit was when they go and see the couple where they've killed the dog on the road by mistake in a hit. They've hit the dog and they go and see those.

[Dan Levy]

What was she wearing? You're gonna have to remind me.

[Tim Blanks]

It was just so outlandish, but nobody comments. It's completely normal and yet it's just a sort of. It's like a geological pattern of heat. And

[Dan Levy]

that was the. I mean, there was some of the fondest memories of shooting that show was simply put, putting her into the clothes. Yeah, there's a Raff for Jill Sander dress she wears. It's a black PVC strapless dress that we put a shirt underneath. And we had these custom shirts made. These kind of Karl Lagerfeld collars. Yeah, these high collared shirts that were all custom made for her. And it was this black dress that had a black PVC tie around the waist in order to kind of snatch the waist in. And she wears it when she's being photographed in the field. And it's a moment of like extreme vulnerability for her because she's kind of being used. And there was something so uncomfortable about the look that it made for her own discomfort. Like it brought about this discomfort in I think, the character of Moira. But also it required. At one point I looked over and two people, because it was pvc to tie the belt, it was rubbing against like kind of plastic on plastic or rubber on rubber. So someone I looked over and they had their foot on her back and they were pulling two different people were pulling the belt around. Cause it had, like, a double wrap around her waist, and then it had, like, a tie in it. And in order to get the tie, you had to hyper stretch the PVC so that by the time that you tied it and released would stay and.

[Tim Blanks]

Oh, God.

[Dan Levy]

Those are the memories that I cherish with the show and with Catherine. Is like having to almost look at an instruction manual on how to wear some of the clothes that we put her in.

[Tim Blanks]

Yeah. Well, it's a masterstroke. And it was just magnificent in so many ways. And you're such a brilliant artist, Dan, and it's just wonderful to talk to you. And thank you so much for being on fashion your own.

[Dan Levy]

Thank you so much for having me.

[Tim Blanks]

Sa.