MAN OF STYLE : Jeremy Irons
by Angela Matusik, In Style
April 1, 1998
Despite portraying some of the most tortured souls in cinema--from his Academy Award-winning Claus von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune to Humbert Humbert in the yet-to-be-released remake of Lolita--Jeremy Irons is a very decisive Englishman, especially when it comes to style. "I'm a pragmatist," he explains. He'll don a Barbour jacket and riding boots for country weekends (he lives near London with his wife, actress Sinead Cusack, and their sons Sam, 19, and Max, 11). And then for the premiere party for his new film, Wayne Wang's Chinese Box (a love story set against Britain's return of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China), he'll pair an Armani suit with a coordinating David Tang shirt. Notwithstanding his self-assured appearance, Irons' affection for clothes breeds contradictions. As he puts it, "I like clothes, but I don't like people who like clothes."
What do you look for in clothing?
I've always felt that the way men dress is appalling. But it's not that they buy badly. I think jackets are ugly, trousers are ugly, and shirts are fussy. I mean, why do we need these little collars? We're just used to them, so we don't see them anymore. If you look at most men on the streets, what do you see? Their asses--and it's not a good shape. Arabs or North Africans, however, wear these long, flowing lines. It's a fantastic way to cover that shape we're all born with.
What do you like about Asian fashion?
It works for me because I've got a long neck. If I have shirts made, I always have to have a slightly higher collar built in. The problem with Asian clothes is that they're too small for me. But at David Tang's store in Hong Kong [where Chinese Box was filmed] I found wonderful designs, great fabrics--and my size.
Who are your favorite European designers?
Armani fits me well, and I like his fabrics, even though they're a pig when it comes to cleaning. But I love his lines.
You wore sneakers with your tux to the 1990 Academy Awards. Was that practicality or rebellion? 
It was neither, really; it was instinct. I have a pair of patent leather shoes, which were my father's, that I usually wear with black-tie. They're great to dance in, but since you don't dance at the Academy Awards I wore sneakers. It's a very nervous occasion, you know, being up for an award, and I wanted to keep my feet firm on the ground. I feel uncomfortable in the spotlight sometimes, so I don't want to make a big statement with what I'm wearing.
Where does your sense of style come from?
I don't know. I just see people on the streets sometimes and think, That's perfect. I love fabrics. My home is full of very eclectic fabrics. I like mixing colors and textures. It sounds as if it's an important part of my life, but it's not. It's just that when I furnished my house, that's how I did it. And I think my wife would probably admit that they were my choices. I have a specific eye. I'm one of those annoying men who think their way is the best way.
Does your wife have a say in how you dress?
Not at all. There are days when I just can't get it together, and she'll sort of nudge me in a different direction. I enjoy shopping for her though. At the beginning of our relationship, I'd actually go shopping first and put stuff aside in the stores for her to try on. Then I'd take her there on the back of the bike and we'd go in and I'd say, "There are five outfits you want to try on here." Then she went through a period of rebellion where she said, "I don't want you to dress me," and she bought power clothes, which I didn't much like. I prefer a more feminine way of dressing for her. Now we're sort of midway. She buys some things, and I buy some things for her.
Do you contribute to your characters' wardrobes?
Yes. I mostly wear clothes of my own because I don't like new clothes. If I'm very like the character, which I was in Chinese Box, it's easier to use my own clothes, because it's important for a character's clothes to look worn, and secondhand clothes rarely fit. For Lolita, most of the pieces were bought, but we had a very clear idea of what they should be. For The Man in the Iron Mask, I said to the designer very early on that my character should wear leather.
Did you ever have a bad fashion phase?
When Carnaby Street was at its height [in the late sixties], yes, absolutely. I made dreadful errors. I had two pairs of flared trousers that buttoned down the side. When they got wet in the rain, they would get heavier and heavier. The water would creep up until I looked sort of like Donald Duck. Eventually, they split because they were too tight.
Do you think about the aesthetic of smoking?
I'm very, very ashamed to be a smoker. I gave it up for two years and was pleased with myself. Then I went back on about two months ago and, bang, I'm up to 40 a day. However, there is a side of me which is very anarchic. I think our job as actors, as artists, is to constantly make people question, to not fit into the status quo. So I particularly enjoy smoking in America because I have a great dislike for political correctness--which I suppose goes back to the sneakers.