The Knives Out knit wear has competition

HOUSE OF GUCCI | Lady Gaga and Adam Driver look sharp for Ridley Scott.

Lest there be any doubt, Adam Driver and Lady Gaga will not be dressing down for Ridley Scott’s latest. One look at Driver’s knitwear is surely enough to leave Chris Evans’ sweater in Knives Out feeling fundamentally out-classed. As for Gaga’s headgear, not since Catherine O’Hara’s Moira Rose descended upon Schitt’s Creek have we seen its equal.

Happily, the subject demands no less. Adapted by scriptwriter Roberto Bentivegna from a book by Sara Gay Forden, House Of Gucci will focus on the tumultuous tale of fashion-house scion Maurizio Gucci (Driver) and his ex-wife Patrizia Reggiani (Gaga), the socialite convicted of orchestrating the assassination of her ex-hubby in 1995. Cue media sensation.

For Scott, the project joins The Last Duel as his first feature since 2017’s All The Money In The World. Since the latter also focused on the lifestyles of the inordinately rich, Gucci resembles an unofficial partner-piece of sorts – and it also shares a choppy gestation with its predecessor.

“This project has long been a labour of love for both Ridley and me,” Scott’s wife and co-producer Giannina Scott told The Hollywood Reporter. “The story is so epic, the stakes so high and the characters so richly drawn that we were determined to get it the big screen.” House Of Gucci has been cooking for at least a decade, with actors linked to the project including Leonardo DiCaprio, Angelina Jolie, Penélope Cruz and Margot Robbie. Scott’s daughter Jordan was attached to direct at one point, too, followed by Wong Kar-wai (In The Mood For Love, 2046) - no stranger to films about really, really ridiculously good-looking people being chic.

With Gaga fresh from Academy Awards heat for 2018’s

A Star Is Born, and Driver still seemingly beaming from his own Oscar nomination for Marriage Story, House Of Gucci has finally been shooting in Italy with awards-grade casting across the board. Joining the leads will be Al Pacino as Aldo Gucci, Jared Leto as Aldo’s son Paolo and Jeremy Irons as Aldo’s brother Rodolfo. Back when he was in the thick of making Robin Hood, Ridley described the project as “the history of the family and how it evolved”. That description seems to hold good now.

Either way, a torrid true-crime tale of salacious, starladen excess surely beckons, complete with duly extravagant clobber. Pandemic pending, red carpets won’t know what hit them. And the Academy Award for Best Costume Design goes to… KH

ETA | 24 NOVEMBER 2021 / HOUSE OF GUCCI OPENS LATER THIS YEAR.