TV’s Coolest Fresh Faces Share Their Fall Fashion Picks

As Who What Wear’s bookings director, it’s my job to stay on top of who and what is going to be big in entertainment. Part of that means watching a lot of film and television—I mean a lot a lot—but real talk: I’m picky about my TV lineup. Between my steadfast drama favorites (Game of Thrones and This Is Us), regular Netflix binges (Stranger Things and Chef’s Table), and guilty pleasures (Riverdale and The Bachelor), I have little room for new additions to my queue. But this season is different. With an exciting crop of talent popping up in new and returning shows, there are plenty of reasons to expand my must-watch list.

Particularly of note are the five special ladies below. From the intriguing new series regular on This Is Us to an HBO scene stealer, these women are the reason we’re tuning in this fall. Keep reading to meet the fresh faces on our radar as they talk about their latest projects and share the fashion items they can’t live without this season.

WHO: Elizabeth Lail (@elizaboon)

WHAT: Lifetime knows a thing or two about constructing a juicy thriller, and the network have an exciting one on its hands this season with the new series You, a story about a bookstore manager, played by Gossip Girl’s Penn Badgley, whose obsession with an inspiring writer takes a sinister turn. While it’s hard not to be charmed by Badgley’s devilish grin, we’ve spotted a star on the rise in the show’s other lead, Elizabeth Lail. Only two episodes in, we can already confirm her performance is scary good.

Audiences will love You because…“It’s like a good book you can’t put down.”

The most surprising trait my character Guinevere Beck and I share is… “We both wear clothes and shoes until they are falling apart. And we both cry in our bathrooms.” 

The most memorable moment from the set of You was… “When one of our incredible directors, Vic Mahoney, whispered in my ear, ‘You’re asking for him to love you.’ I was so moved and reminded that Beck really is seeking love for herself from others. It changed my performance and deepened my empathy for Beck.”

One invaluable thing I’ve done to prepare for a role this year is… “Listen to music. It sounds so simple, but I always tend to find my character’s heartbeat in a song.”

The best piece of advice I’ve ever received from a castmate was… “Stay in your lane. You can’t compare your actors journey to others’. Turns out that’s true in all areas of life.”

My favorite outfit I ever wore on set would have to be… “Guinevere Beck in Joe’s Nirvana T-shirt. I still wear it today.”

However, if you catch me on an off-duty day, chances are I’m wearing… “A cozy sweater and scarf. Scarves are one of my favorite accessories (or security blanket).”

My style icons are… “The Hepburns—Audrey and Katharine.”

My fall wardrobe you’ll not be complete without these three pieces…

WHO: Luna Blaise (@lunablaise)

WHAT: If you were paying close attention to the New York Fashion Week party scene, you might have noticed a new starlet stealing the spotlight in a handful of noteworthy looks. That was Luna Blaise, star of NBC’s new show Manifest. Blaise plays Olive Stone, who is faced with a shocking new reality when a flight carrying her father, twin brother, and aunt returns home miraculously after being reported missing for five years. We can’t resist a good, edge-of-your-seat mystery—or fashion star in the making!

Audiences will love Manifest because… “The show is a sci-fi mystery filled with so many different elements, and you will never get bored watching it. You will always be on the edge of your seat with all the twists and turns.”

The thing I enjoy most about portraying Olive Stone in Manifest is… “Having the opportunity to share her extraordinary story and the challenge of bringing her complexity and vulnerability to life on screen. As an everyday teenager discovering who she is day to day, she is completely relatable. However, what gives Olive that extra edge are the many layers to her character alongside unforeseen supernatural circumstances.”

The most memorable moment from the set of Manifest was… “During the pilot, I was scheduled to shoot a soccer scene on location with my onscreen TV dad Josh Dallas. However, due to weather, we had to cancel a couple of times. When we finally shot the scene, it was so worth it because the backdrop was this exquisite view of the Manhattan skyline. It was so worth the wait.”

One invaluable thing I’ve done to prepare for a role this year is… “A different approach to connecting and bringing out something surprising in the audition that is specifically chosen for that character. Sometimes it’s super subtle, and other times it’s extra. When I auditioned for Olive, I chose to wear zero makeup, and I also wore my hair natural. I wanted her inner confidence to be recognized and not be distracted by external obstacles.”

The best piece of advice I ever received from a castmate was… “To always be yourself and never change for anyone or anything. Trust your instincts and always remember where you came from.”

My favorite outfit I ever wore on set would have to be… “Every year on Fresh Off the we would do a Halloween episode, and the costumes were incredible. Season four, my costume was Poison Ivy. I wore a long red wig and a super-cool green catsuit. For sure one of my favorites.”

However, if you catch me on an off-duty day, chances are I’m wearing… “100% sweatpants and a hoodie.”

My Instagram dos and don’ts are… “Do always show your true personality, and don’t engage in the negative.”

My fall wardrobe would not be complete without these three pieces… “Since this fall I am living on the East Coast I am excited to buy a super-chic winter coat, the perfect black boots, and a winter bucket hat.”

WHO: Dominique Fishback (@domfishback)

WHAT: With back-to-back-to-back 2018 projects, Dominique Fishback’s ascent to stardom shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. While you can catch the actress and playwright in theaters next month with the highly anticipated YA adaptation of The Hate U Give, we’re most excited for the Brooklyn native’s return as scene-stealing sex worker Darlene on HBO’s The Deuce. The drama series about the rise of the adult film industry in the ’70s is back for a second season, and between the visual feast of the glamorous costumes and NYC backdrop and Darlene’s whip-smart dialogue, it’s a winner in our books. If you’re not already watching, you have five days to catch up, and trust me: It will be five days well spent!

The one thing I can reveal about Darlene going into season two of The Deuce is that… “Darlene is finally going to start taking actions into her own hands, evaluating the consequences of the decisions she’s made, and really considering what a future for herself could look like.”

The thing I love most about portraying Darlene is… “All of the light she still brings into a room in spite of the darkness surrounding her and the Times Square she is living in.”

The most surprising trait my character and I share is… “Our tendency to smile a lot, but also our love for books! Darlene is an avid reader of the great American novels, and I love how-to books, mostly books on writing, acting, financial independence, art, directing, the foster care system, history, especially African American history, to name a few. I even have my own mini library that I have alphabetized by author and title. I think Darlene would love that!”

The most memorable moment from the season two set of The Deuce was… “When I was in a scene with two other actresses and Gbenga Akinnagbe, who plays Larry Brown. One camera was on him filming his coverage, and another on me for reaction shots. There was a lot of choreography and moving pieces in this scene. Gbenga is really into the actions, giving it his all, when his wig goes flying off. What made it even funnier was that he didn’t realize it was off, and he kept going. I tried so hard not to laugh because I didn’t want to ruin the shot, but then I thought the footage wasn’t usable anyway, so I let out the biggest laugh. Now that I think about it, though, it was two separate shots, so mine would’ve been usable regardless. Oops!”

One invaluable thing I’ve done to prepare for a role this year was… “Letting go and trusting that I already had all the things inside of me that I needed to bring the character to life. Knowing my lines, showing up, and just being present were actually the best things for the scene. Sometimes having to prepare a different way is scary, but if your mind and body are not allowing you to do things the way, you always have then you have to respect your instrument enough to make a change.”

The best piece of advice I ever received from a castmate was… “To not worry if a director isn’t giving you direction. If you weren’t giving a creator what they wanted, you would know.”

The accounts I love to follow on Instagram are… “Will Smith because he’s always up for a challenge and keeps things funny! The Rock because he’s the most electrifying man in the world with a smile and heart to match. And Lena Waithe, because she is creating work for herself and for other artists of color. There’s always a new post about a project of hers in the works. I want to collaborate with her one day, so it’s nice to see the chances keep growing. She is making the most of her opportunities, and that’s what I aim to do as well.”

My favorite outfit I ever wore on set would have to be… “Honestly, Darlene’s wardrobe this season is so fly I really can’t choose. I often said on set that HBO should make a Darling Darlene clothing line.”

However, if you catch me on an off-duty day, chances are I’m wearing… “A crop top, my Sundance 2018 hat, some jeans or basketball shorts, and a T shirt—very incognito.”

My fall wardrobe would not be complete without these three pieces…

WHO: Sarah Bolger (@sarahbolger)

WHAT: Among a testosterone-filled cast, Sarah Bolger holds her own (and is a standout) as Emily Thomas in Mayans MC, FX’s follow-up to the popular biker series Sons of Anarchy. While the opportunity to play a strong and dynamic character was appealing to Bolger, the role was not without its challenges. The Irish actress had to not only master an American accent but also learn Spanish for the part.

Audiences will love Mayans MC because… “We have some of the most intricate, dark, and beautifully written characters on TV. These are characters who audiences will cry with, fight for, and love just as much as we’ve loved playing them.”

The thing I enjoy most about portraying Emily Thomas in Mayans MC is… “Firstly, it’s been a joy—and a welcomed challenge—to learn and act in a second language. Secondly, I get to live vicariously through this woman. Emily is powerful, has a thick skin—she’s a shot-caller. We get to see directly how she’s changed from a young girl to the woman she is when we meet her in the pilot. She’s dealt with such pain and loss in her youth she’s had to woman up at such an early age. No one makes decisions for this woman. Nothing gets past Emily Thomas.”

The most surprising traits my character and I share are… “Pragmatism and stubbornness. We’re so different in many ways: Emily Thomas is a mother; Miguel is her husband. She’s made harder choices in her life than I’ve probably ever had to make in my own. But we’re both as stubborn as they come.”

The most memorable moment from the set of Mayans MC was… “The final table read for episode 10 had us all—actors, producers, directors, and writers—in a full minute’s applause. We are like children—us actors—waiting for the next script to come out, waiting for the next volume of our story. We all felt real emotional saying the final words of our season one.”

One invaluable thing I’ve done to prepare for a role this year is… "Obviously, taking Spanish lessons has been a huge part of my process for Emily Thomas. She grew up with EZ Reyes, her childhood sweetheart, so she speaks colloquially. Every day has involved lessons, rehearsals, or homework, which I absolutely loved. Learning a second language is genuinely a dream come true, and the fact that I get to do it for my art makes it all the more thrilling.”

The best piece of advice I ever received from a castmate was… “Just watching Edward James Olmos on set was a master class all by itself. He’s a legend in the flesh and such a gentleman.”

My favorite outfit I ever wore on set would have to be… “I wore a pair of leopard-print So Kate Christian Louboutins in the first two episodes of Mayans MC. After 12 hours and, yes, slightly sore feet, I still didn’t want to take them off.”

However, if you catch me on an off-duty day, chances are I’m wearing… “Black high-waisted jeans, ankle boots, and a belt are always my uniform. Three-quarter jackets, too, even in 100-degree heat.”

My fall wardrobe would not be complete without these three pieces…

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WHO: Melanie Liburd (@melanieliburd)

WHAT: After the emotional rollercoaster that was season two of This Is Us, a budding love story is exactly what we need. Enter Melanie Liburd. The British actress has been promoted to series regular on the hit show, playing Zoe, Beth’s cousin and Kevin’s girlfriend. While Liburd can’t reveal too much about her character or the relationship—you’ll have to tune in to the premiere September 25th!—she did share her fall shopping list with us, which is certainly a win.

The one thing I can reveal about my character on This Is Usis…“Zoe is a documentary maker and humanitarian who loves to travel.”

The thing I love most about portraying Zoe in This Is Us is… “her complexities, courageousness, and passion for everything she does. She continues to surprise me.”

The most surprising trait my character and I share is…“we’re both free spirits who don’t take life too seriously.”

The most memorable moment from the set of This Is Us was…“meeting the rest of the cast on my first day. I was so nervous and they were all so kind and welcoming to me. It really is a dream job!”

One invaluable thing I’ve done to prepare for a role this year…“is working with my incredible dialect coach Jerome Butler. We’ve been working on a slight East Coast accent to sound more like Zoe’s cousin Beth, played by Susan Kelechi Watson. They grew up together after Zoe’s mom abandoned her at Beth’s house when she was eight years old.”

The best piece of advice I ever received from a castmate was… “learn the power of no, be patient, and never stop working on your craft.”

My favorite outfit I ever wore on set would have to be…“the Red Priestesses costume in Game of Thrones. It was made of beautiful heavy vintage silks and was about 100 years old. I felt magnificent wearing it. Zoe also has an incredible boho-chic style. Our head of costume Hala does such a wonderful job of mixing high street, designer, and vintage finds together seamlessly.”

However, if you catch me on an off-duty day, chances are I’m wearing…”high-waisted jeans, a vintage T-shirt, and black boots. I also live in jumpsuits and love that they’re so easy to dress up or down.”

The British girl fashion staple I can’t quit is…“a tweed blazer with a vintage scarf thrown around my neck. And on grey days I love a red lip.”

My fall wardrobe would not be complete without these three pieces…

For even more celebrity and entertainment coverage, be sure to check out our September cover story and It Girl, It Brand series.