Deliberately messy makeup reflects the real-life entrepreneur’s lifestyle and struggles

The makeup team behind The Dropout has shed light on why Amanda Seyfried’s portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes includes intentionally unpolished and dishevelled makeup.

Hulu’s The Dropout, which premiered on 3 March, stars Seyfried as Holmes, the biotech entrepreneur convicted of wire fraud and conspiracy in January 2022 after misleading investors. In the show, Seyfried’s version of Holmes often sports smudged lipstick and a messy aesthetic, deliberately mirroring the real-life figure’s challenging lifestyle.

Jorjee Douglas, the series’ head of makeup, recently spoke with Vanity Fair to explain the choice. Douglas noted that Holmes’s demanding 20-hour workdays would have left her with little time or interest in traditional grooming or self-care.

Douglas said: “There were points where she was really at a breaking point of trying to sell her company to investors.”

She went on to explain how Holmes used makeup as a sort of weapon—emphasising a “stereotypically sexy” look with bold red lipstick and dark eyeliner to manipulate perception. Douglas researched real-life photos of Holmes to get the look just right, noting “all of the different shades of red that she wore” and the way her foundation often appeared mismatched.

Douglas added: “She wore makeup that sometimes clashed with her skin tone in college… sometimes it was clumpy lipstick, or out-of-line lip liner.”

The aim, Douglas explained, was to “honour” the real Elizabeth Holmes as authentically as possible, despite the painful associations her story holds. She noted, “There’s no way to look at the real Elizabeth Holmes without feeling some sort of pain.”

The first three episodes of The Dropout are available to watch on Hulu in the United States and Disney Plus in the United Kingdom.