How Does the Cast of Halston Compare to Their Real Life Inspirations?

American fashion designer Halston had a flair for the theatric. His life, complete with invites to all the hottest parties, a star-studded circle of friends, mega-fame and mega-tantrums, had as much drama as a television series, and then, his story was adapted for the small screen. Halston, Neflix and Ryan Murphy's take on the designer's rise and fall, hit the streaming platform May 14, with Dan Minahan (American Crime Story, Game of Thrones) directing the five-episode limited series, which stars Ewan McGregor as Halston and Krysta Rodriguez as Liza Minnelli. Now, as the show received five Emmy nominations, take a look at how McGregor and his fellow cast members compare to their real life counterparts.

The Obi-Wan Kenobi actor told the Hollywood Reporter he was interested in the role as soon as director Dan Minahan showed him pictures of Halston and his entourage. “I could tell instantly from the photos: I wanted to play him. Just something about the way he holds himself, something in his eyes,” McGregor said. After officially signing on to the project, McGregor dove in. He sat in on pitch meetings, studied footage of the designer, met with Liza Minnelli herself, and even worked with the show's costume designer to learn how to sew. Minahan told the Hollywood Reporter, “When you see him make the dresses in the show, he’s literally cutting the fabric, pinning it, and making it.”

But some people, including Billy Porter, were critical of the decision to cast McGregor–who identifies as heterosexual–as the openly gay Halston. In his interview with The Hollywood Reporter, McGregor expressed that he understood and respected the criticism, but stood by the casting. “If it had been a story about Halston’s sexuality more, then maybe it’s right that gay actors should play that role,” he said. “But in this case — and I don’t want to sound like I’m worming out of this, because it’s something I did think a lot about — I suppose ultimately I felt like it was just one part of who he was.”

“There are people I met who do not have nice things to say about him. And there are people who love him and are unbelievably loyal to this day. I was excited to play that. To go to the extremes of his temper,” McGregor said in the interview.

Icon of stage and screen (and one of Halston's closest friends) Liza Minnelli is portrayed by Krysta Rodriguez, who herself has experience performing both on Broadway (The Addams Family, A Chorus Line, In The Heights, and Spring Awakening) and in TV shows like Younger and Smash.

In an interview published in Town & Country's May issue, Rodriguez dished about how she tackled the role. “Liza has been replicated so often by people trying to do impersonations and emulate her,” she said. “What I wanted to get into was her emotional journey and her relationship to Halston. They were linked their whole lives, and I think that the two of them meeting created both of them.”

An aptitude for entertaining isn't the only thing Rodriguez holds in common with Minnelli. T&C also caught up with director Dan Minahan, who shared why Rodriguez was such a good fit for the role. “Besides the similarities of Krysta's physicality–she has the right bone structure and those big, beautiful eyes–she had something about her. That guileless quality, the sadness, and the tenacity that Liza has.”

“What I tried to honor was her genuine humanity,” Rodriguez told T&C.

French actress Rebecca Daya plays famed Italian jewelry designer Elsa Peretti, one of Halston’s muses, and friends. While working as a model in New York City, Peretti began making jewelry for herself. She would go on to design for Tiffany & Co., debuting her first line in 1974. Peretti recently passed away in March 2021, at the age of 80.

Halston introduces American audiences to Venezuelan actor Gian Franco Rodriguez. Rodriguez plays Victor Hugo, who was Halston’s long-time partner. Hugo was also part of Halston’s business, decorating shop windows, and he would go on to work as one of Andy Warhol’s assistants.

Pittu is a TV veteran, known for roles in Elementary, Search Party, The Blacklist, and Blue Bloods. As a member of the Halston cast, he plays fashion illustrator Joe Eula, whose varied accomplishments include designing album covers for artists like Miles Davis and the Supremes. Eula also worked closely with Halston and was named creative director of the company in 1970. For the legendary fashion show, the Battle of Versailles, an event which is depicted in the Netflix series, Eula created the backdrop for the American designers.

Culkin, who's had roles in films like Scream 4 and Signs (and is notably a brother to Macaulay and Kieran), plays Joel Schumacher, who started out as a costume designer before becoming an established film director. Halston and Schumacher met on Fire Island, one of Halston’s favorite getaway spots. Schumacher was a student at Parsons at the time, and the young Halston was still designing hats at Bergdorf Goodman. The two worked closely together for years, and Schumacher was one of the few people Halston recruited when he decided to start his business. Later, Schumacher went on to direct films such as The Phantom of the Opera, Batman & Robin, and St. Elmo’s Fire.

Town & Country readers may recognize Kelly Bishop as Emily Gilmore in Gilmore Girls or as a member of the original cast of A Chorus Line, but in Halston, she plays Eleanor Lambert. Lambert was a famed publicist in the fashion industry who helped give global credence to American designers. One of the ways in which she did so was by producing the 1973 Palace of Versailles fashion show. At the show, which viewers can see recreated in the Netflix series, five American designers (Halston, Oscar de la Renta, Anne Klein, Bill Blass, and Stephen Burrows) were pitted against five French designers (Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Pierre Cardin, Emanuel Ungaro, and Christian Dior’s Marc Bohan). Other career highlights for Lambert include creating New York Fashion Week, as well as the Coty Fashion Critics Awards, now known as the C.F.D.A. Awards.