How do you design costumes for a show that includes the American Civil War, a biblical-era drama, and seventies porn chic—sometimes all in the same episode? For costume designer Christina Flannery, The Righteous Gemstones has been a wild and genre-blending ride, filled with outrageous looks and unexpected challenges. In this interview, Flannery breaks down the final season of the HBO hit, from pushing Baby Billy to his final form, to channeling biblical-era glamour for Teenjus, to crafting Judy Gemstone’s glittering high-fashion fantasy. She also opens up about the magic of her team, saying goodbye to a dream job, and what the show has meant to her career.
Spencer Williams: Since the last time we talked, the show has blown up. The costumes are such a huge part of its success. You were honored with an Emmy nomination for the third season of The Righteous Gemstones, which I was so excited about. What has this journey felt like, leading up to season four?
Christina Flannery: Yeah, I mean, honestly, it was a total shock to even get nominated. My assistant costume designer kept saying, “We’re gonna get nominated,” and I was like, “No way, it’s not happening.” So when it actually did, it felt surreal—we were losing our minds. We were on set when the nominations came out, running through the halls of Sears, which is where the Gemstones studio is. It was amazing.
We were actually shooting the telethon episode when the news came in, so we were already doing some wild stuff—like watching Danny and Adam fly around in those jetpack costumes—while getting this exciting news. It was such a cool moment.
Spencer Williams: I’m sad it’s ending, but it feels like the perfect sendoff. What were those early conversations like with Danny McBride and the team as you started figuring out what season four would look like?
Christina Flannery: Even before I saw the first script, I had a chat with our line producer back in November. They said this season would be easier—fewer heavy background costumes. So I thought, “Great! Maybe we’ll get to hone in on storylines and, you know, not die.” But then I read the Civil War episode and was like, “Excuse me, what?!”
It was a lot. In TV, especially, there are so many moving parts. One minute you’re doing something, the next it’s changed. We were supposed to shoot the Civil War episode first, then that got pushed. So we started the telethon, then went back to Civil War—it was wild.
This season was tough. We were running double units, had half the shooting schedule compared to last year, and we’re filming in Charleston—which, let’s just say, doesn’t have a mall. Everything had to be built or outsourced. It was a beast. But I think the payoff shows—there’s so much range this season.
Spencer Williams: I was thinking of you while watching the first episode—it’s a full-on Civil War film! So now you’re a period costume designer too. What did your research and prep look like for that episode? And of course, Elijah Gemstone is played by none other than Bradley Cooper.
Christina Flannery: Being in Charleston helped a lot—we had access to great libraries and historical resources. There are a lot of reenactors and Civil War literature in the area. We went to the library, pulled books, and really dove into it. I worked closely with Richard A. Wright, our production designer, pulling ideas from articles. At one point, there was talk of including a camel, since some regiments apparently had exotic animals. It didn’t end up happening, but we were seriously considering it!
We didn’t know who would play Elijah at first. There were conversations like, “Should it be Danny? What if Edi played him?” It was all up in the air. Then suddenly, it was like, “Christina, you’re flying to New York to fit Bradley Cooper.” I was like, “Okay, here we go.” We had to build everything, make multiples, and do fittings on his doubles to avoid wasting his time. He’s a superstar, after all.
I’m really proud of how it turned out. I’m big on aging and breakdown—I came up doing dye work and distressing, and I love telling stories through grime. Civil War soldiers were ragtag, scavenging from fallen bodies. I studied films like All Quiet on the Western Front—the aging and distressing there was phenomenal.
Spencer Williams: That episode came out so beautifully. I loved seeing all the background characters, especially that moment in the church. Such a great episode, Christina—I’m so happy for you. Let’s move back to the present for a little bit.
Kelvin goes on such an incredible journey this season. Between launching PRISM and winning “Top Christ-Following Man,” he’s living his best life—and the costumes reflect that entirely. Did you feel like you really got to go all-in with Kelvin’s costumes this season and take him to the top of his game?
Christina Flannery: I really loved the PRISM storyline. As we’re shooting, we don’t always know what’s coming—the scripts are constantly evolving—so it’s always exciting to see where things go. But PRISM was such a fun direction. I loved finally getting to join Keefe and Kelvin together visually. Many of their looks were extremely cohesive, and it gave us the opportunity to really push Kelvin’s style.
Back in season three, I started leaning into the “hype priest” aesthetic, and this season we went full-on flamboyant, fun, over-the-top. It’s like Kelvin stepped into his queer, true self—and that was really, really fun to play with.
Spencer Williams: When I heard Megan Mullally was joining the show, I was over the moon. I love her. Lori is such a fun character—she’s a singer, she was friends with Aimee-Leigh, and I was getting a little Bonnie Raitt, Tanya Tucker, maybe even some Reba McEntire in the vibe. What was it like working with that character?
Christina Flannery: Megan Mullally is an icon. Just being in the presence of that kind of greatness was such a joy. Her husband was actually around for a lot of the fittings too, and they’re both incredible people—really sharp, super aware of everything going on. There was also a touch of young Loretta Lynn, and anytime I get to sneak in a Reba reference? I’m thrilled.
Spencer Williams: I don’t know what it is, but you and Megan Mullally just make sense together. It feels right.
Christina Flannery: I love her! We really are very similar—funny, but also a little crass. I adore her. She was so fun to dress—tons of amazing Western wear. And even with the country vibe, everything we do on Gemstones has that little twist of fashion. We’d layer in designer vintage pieces—like a great vintage Western jacket styled just right to give it some fashion-forward flair. She blended right in with the cast from day one. Watching it back, it feels like she’s always been part of the world.
Spencer Williams: It’s such a natural character—it just made sense. The second I saw her, I was like, “Well, yeah, of course.”
I’ve always loved the interlude episodes, and this one really got me. Seeing Kelvin in the Jimmy Neutron shirt nearly put me in the ground. But the final nail in the coffin was that Spider-Man shirt with the webbing—I had both of those shirts! What was it like working with the younger actors and tracking down these kinds of pieces? I mean, you can’t just go out and find a Jimmy Neutron shirt like that anymore.
Christina Flannery: I know! It’s wild. They’re growing up so fast, but they’re so talented—so funny—and they completely become Jesse and Judy. It’s freaky sometimes how well they channel those characters. Especially those two—it’s like, eerie how spot-on they are.
We got to have a little more fun with Judy’s look this season because she’s getting older, so we could pull in things like Triple Five Soul and other trends from that era that were cool at the time. There’s even a little bit of Christina Aguilera energy in there. It helped move her out of that bratty “kid sister” space and into something more elevated, which was fun to explore.
As for young Kelvin—he is just so damn funny. I don’t get to spend a ton of time on set, so when I go back and finally watch the episodes—especially because I watch them at the same time as everyone else, except for the first two—it’s such a treat. He cracks me up.
And that Spider-Man shirt? Oh my god. There are some things where I’m like, I will die on the hill for this costume piece, and that shirt was one of them. I had to have it. It was just too good. And I love that you noticed that detail—no one’s brought that up to me yet, and it’s honestly one of my favorite things.
Spencer Williams: Right? It was from that time when you’d go to Target and they’d have the shirt and the pants in one pack, and it’d say something like “includes webbed design.” I vividly remember owning that—and a Batman one too. It was spooky, honestly.
Okay, we have to talk about Baby Billy. First of all, Walton Goggins is on a rocket ship to another planet right now. This is probably my favorite Baby Billy arc yet. I mean, we’ve seen him go from talk show host to singer, and now he’s this Hollywood piece of shit—and I love it. It’s the best arc. He’s become a full-on monster in the most delightful way.
You know these types—you probably even know this character in real life: the egomaniac Hollywood director. How did you evolve him this season?
Christina Flannery: Oh, totally. And yeah—Walton… my God. It was so funny coming into the season because he had just come off The White Lotus, playing a completely different character. And then suddenly he lands back in the Gemstones world, and I’m like, “Okay. We’re definitely going to do something weird.”
And he’s just so game for everything. Honestly, I always have to shout out Walton—because this couldn’t be happening to a better person. I love seeing this trajectory for him. He deserves it. And also? He’s one of the rare actors who is genuinely supportive of costume design. He really understands the role of costumes in storytelling. He’s a true advocate.
So this season, when we got the script and he’s now a director, we thought: Okay, where do we go from here? And immediately I was like, “Obviously—‘70s porn director.” That was the vibe. And that totally unlocked it.
Spencer Williams: Oh my God. That’s so it.
Christina Flannery: Right? So we leaned into that. We custom-built that telethon look. That fabric was just—liquid. So beautiful. It had this slick, glam sheen. I loved it.
After the oyster shell look in season three—which was such a huge moment for both me and Walton—I was like, Where the hell do we go from there? That was the challenge. But I think the telethon look pulled it off.
His wardrobe this season was just so over the top in the best way. But we also brought in this new element—he’s becoming even weirder. Like full-on esoteric strange.
My girlfriend and I were talking—maybe in 20 years, they’ll do what they always do and announce a spinoff. And by then, Walton will actually be the right age to play himself as a Baby Billy-style elder! Honestly… I’d watch the hell out of that.
Spencer Williams: Let’s talk about Teenjus. You were getting into it a little bit earlier, but this is essentially a biblical period film taking place in the middle of The Righteous Gemstones. You’ve already done a Civil War film at this point—how many types of genres can you fit into one season of TV?
Christina Flannery: It’s just… I don’t know if I’ll ever come up against another beast like this show. So with Teenjus, we wanted to bring in this biblical era—but then, as you’ll see, we asked ourselves: what would biblical look like if it were colorful?
We actually had two versions of the biblical costumes. And then there’s always other stuff going on. Maybe there’s a pharaoh. Maybe there are belly dancers. It’s wild. You can’t do this kind of stuff without a team that is pissing themselves laughing almost every day.
I’m gonna miss it. I’m gonna miss my team and that whole crew. Anytime I get to work with Danny, it’s going to be a good time.
Spencer Williams: Well, hopefully this isn’t the last collaboration, because I think we all need that, honestly. Christina, people are constantly messaging me about Judy and Keefe. They’re really the big style icons, even if their storylines weren’t as big as Kelvin’s this season. But they still had incredible looks. Did you have any fun moments working with Judy and Keefe this season?
Christina Flannery: Every time I work with Tony Cavalero, who plays Keefe, he is a vision. Judy’s costumes are always so much fun. She’s just so exciting to dress. Honestly, she might be the funniest character on the show. She’s in the boys’ club, but also kind of the leader of the pack. I get to have so much fun with her. That blue, crazy gown she’s wearing when the monkey’s throwing things—just like, come on!
It’s Gucci. It’s flash. It’s “pretty pretty princess.” It’s what every girl dreams of wearing—not all girls, but you know, some of them! And Tony is always down. Always game. And honestly, part of me has an inner goth, so dressing him is really a nod to that. It’s that cool, dark Gothic aesthetic—very Berlin club meets ’90s grunge. Like, Berghain and all that dark stuff I just love.
Spencer Williams: It’s so effortless for him and for the character, actually.
Christina Flannery: It’s just so easy for him, and yeah—I’m gonna miss the hell out of dressing him too. It’s… never enough leather, never enough black.
Spencer Williams: This brings us to the end—and I’m honestly kind of sad to say that. But since we are talking about the final season, I’d love for you to give a shoutout to your crew. This is such a massive show, and of course, you can’t do it alone. Tell me about the people who helped make it happen over these past two seasons, especially this fourth one.
Christina Flannery: I’m a big advocate of—you are absolutely nothing without your crew. I wish I could take them with me everywhere I go.
Specifically, my cutter/fitter—she builds everything with me and has never once told me “no.” She’s a phenomenal joy to work with. She was Ann Roth’s seamstress, cutter, and head of workroom. Like—I don’t even know how I convinced the woman who did Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom to come make an oyster shell costume with me. It’s incredible.
My assistant costume designer is the funniest, smartest, most ridiculous person—and I handpicked her for this job. She was exactly what I needed, in both seasons. I just love being around her.
I also had a new supervisor this season—she’s actually working on my current show too! I honestly don’t know how she managed to juggle both shows. We had one crew working on two productions at the same time. That’s double the workload with the same number of people. The scheduling alone! People don’t realize how much goes into the paperwork, the logistics—finding people last minute like, “Hello! We need 50 additional costumers today—help!” She also sourced so many of the Civil War pieces with such grace. I’m lucky to have her—I’m actually staying at her apartment while I’m in Los Angeles right now!
We worked our asses off and then would go on the weekends for amazing natural wine, hit the beach, go swimming… it was like a sleepaway camp. I feel so fortunate. And yeah, I already miss it. We still have a group chat that’s going strong. One day, I’m gonna get a big-ass show again—and when I do, I’ll bring everyone back together. That’s my hope.
Spencer Williams: That’s beautiful. Okay, final-final question. What has The Righteous Gemstones meant to you and your career?
Christina Flannery: Gosh… It’s meant everything. Working with someone like Danny McBride—he really opened the door and just said, “Be you. Create. Do whatever your heart desires.” So in a way, I’ve gotten to be Judy Gemstone, and honestly, I could tear up talking about it.
It’s pushed me creatively. It’s humbled me. And it let me live out my wildest dreams. We all struggle with imposter syndrome—I know I do. But Gemstones helped me realize, “Damn, I’m pretty good at this.” I’m just so grateful. It was always a dream show for me to work on, and I still can’t believe I landed it.
So yeah, I could go on and on. I’m proud of the work—and I’m also happy it’s coming to a close. I hate when shows drag on for seven seasons and you’re like, “Babe, that should’ve ended three seasons ago.” I think this is the perfect time to wrap it up. It’s been fantastic.
Spencer Williams: I’m just so happy for you. This couldn’t have happened to a better person. Congratulations on such a great series, and congrats to everyone on your crew. Christina Flannery, thank you so much for joining—this was such a joy.
Christina Flannery: Thank you! I love chatting with you.
