Netflix Releases First Look at Ryan Murphy’s Halston Series Starring Ewan McGregor

Netflix’s limited series Halston, starring Ewan McGregor as the titular legendary fashion designer, will hit the streaming service on May 14th and along with the announcement of that premiere date on Friday, the streamer has released a first look at the series with a mix of stills from the series, key art, and Polaroid-style photos featuring some of the major players in Halston’s story. Series executive producer, American Horror Story co-creator Ryan Murphy, shared the images to his Instagram as well.

According to the official description, the series follows Halston (McGregor) as he “leverages his single, invented name into a worldwide fashion empire that’s synonymous with luxury, sex, status, and fame, literally defining the era he lives in, 1970s and ’80s New York — until a hostile takeover forces him to battle for control of his most precious asset… the name Halston itself.” In addition to McGregor, Halston also stars Krysta Rodriguez as Liza Minnelli, Rebecca Dayan as Elsa Peretti, Gian Franco Rodriguez as Victor Hugo, David Pittu as Joe Eula, Vera Farmiga as Adele, and Rory Culkin as Joel Schumacher. The series is based on the book Simply Halston by Steven Gaines.

Halston initially rose to fame as a designer after designing the pillbox hat Jacqueline Kennedy wore to John F. Kennedy’s presidential inauguration in 1961, but later transformed American fashion in the late 1960s with his simple, minimalistic, and functional approach to women’s clothing by utilizing flowing fabrics and incorporating elements of sportswear. Popular with celebrities including Liza Minnelli, Elizabeth Taylor, and Bianca Jagger, Halston went on to create a fashion empire that included fragrance, menswear, luggage, handbags, lingerie, and bedding. However, after a series of business decisions, including a licensing deal with J.C. Penney for a mid-priced line called Halston III, Halston lost control of his fashion house. He died from AIDS-related cancer in 1990 at the age of 57.

“I grew up in Indiana—where Halston is from—surrounded by cornfields and churches, and I always heard about two people who had gotten out and gone on to bigger, glamorous things: One was Florence Henderson, and one was Halston,” Murphy said in a recent interview for Vogue. “He was always a big figure in my mind—a representation of somebody who had come from humble beginnings and had gone on to do something incredible with his life—and I was always moved by him.”

Halston debuts May 14th on Netflix.