Ever since season two of Succession aired in 2019, Shiv Roy (played by Sarah Snook) has slowly grown into a style icon among her fellow cast members thanks to her modern take on power dressing. After the dynamic character left her job in politics, Shiv took the phrase “dress for the job you want” quite literally once taking over the Waystar Royco throne was in plain sight. Bygone is the Shiv era of soft muted pastel hues and overtly feminine silhouettes, and out came tailored pieces, high-waisted pants, and turtlenecks. All very the Row, Max Mara, old Celine esque that echoed her career shift.
Fast forward to the long-awaited premiere of season three of the cutthroat scandal-filled, yet seemingly all-American family hit show that airs today – that better time than now for a closer look at Shiv’s onscreen transformation? The style transition wasn’t a coincidental one. The show’s costume designer Michelle Matland referred to Shiv’s power dressing as her ‘”new armor” in an interview with the New Yorker. Meticulously following Shiv’s transition from blending into the background to main character.
A signature of this power move is her high-waisted pant looks. No one wears high-waisted trousers better than Shiv – simple. She wears them in neutral terms compared to her former pastel palette, typically pairing them with a structured blazer or signature turtleneck look that asserts BCE (Big CEO Energy.) In the episode when Shiv wore the backless turtleneck from Gabriela Hearst, it served as a pivotal transition for the character as she’s never been depicted in this way before, not to mention it served major business-in-the-front-party-in-the-back vibes, potential foreshadowing?
At the same time, Shiv is making strides to the top, supplemented by her nouveau style, cousin Greg, also known as Greg Hirsch, still holds beta energy when it comes to his dressing. Greg represents practicality often seen in the same rugged green jacket. Without revealing too much, it’s still too soon to call it. Season two left off with a few cliffhangers that could potentially change the game, and the internet seems to think that season three will be the season of Greg, so who knows? He may end up taking this whole thing in the end, despite a less dynamic wardrobe.
