The Story Behind Oscar-Winning Director Daniel Kwan's Wild Everything Everywhere-Inspired Tux

Last night, in the midst of Everything Everywhere All at Once's historic seven-category sweep at the Academy Awards, you may have been distracted by one thing in particular: the incredibly sick tuxedo worn by Daniel Kwan, one half of the now two-time Oscar-winning directing duo Daniels. The searing scarlet ensemble, a bespoke design by the LA menswear label Goodfight, served as a direct nod to a costume worn in the movie by Michelle Yeoh's protagonist Evelyn. And, much like Everything Everywhere itself, the nontraditional fit reflects the larger conversation about representation and self-expression that made it to Hollywood's biggest stage last night.

During the film's climactic sequence, at the central family's Lunar New Year party, Evelyn pulls on a bright red cardigan for luck. But this isn't any run-of-the-mill sweater: it's collared and fuzzy, with intarsia-knit golden flowers running down either sleeve, and a massive graphic that, inexplicably, reads “PUNK" with a blue lipstick emblazoned across the back. “It was one of the most striking pieces in the film,” says Caleb Lin, Goodfight's brand director. 

Everything Everywhere's costume designer Shirley Kurata stumbled upon the original cardigan, Lin says, at a store in LA's Chinatown—the kind of under-the-radar spot your Asian grandmother might shop for matching rayon sets. Or, say, a sweater emblazoned with random English words. “Most of us in fashion saw that and thought it was from a designer brand,” Lin says. “We assumed it was, like, Gucci or something.” (The actual cardigan worn in the film eventually did sell for a high-fashion price, fetching $15,000 at a recent fundraising auction.) 

When it came time to design Kwan's Oscars fit, the cardigan was top of mind for everybody involved. “Our team had already talked about the possibility of the punk sweater separately,” Lin says, “and then Daniel and Shirley came to us and expressed that that's what they wanted to do.” The trick, then, was figuring out how literal the reference should be. 

Goodfight designer Calvin Nguyen devised a classic shawl-collar tuxedo—similar to the one he sketched for Minari's Lee Isaac Chung in 2021—but then flipped it in a rich burgundy gabardine with tonal satin accents. To bring the graphic elements from the cardigan to life, Goodfight sent the unconstructed fabric panels to LA embroiderers Tul Jutargate and Tommy D, who fashioned throwback chenille patches for the “PUNK” logo and flower blossoms, and chain-stitched the vines directly onto the arms. The garments were then pieced together in Koreatown by the brand's longtime tailor, whom they refer to only as Mr. Chang. “He's really old school,” says Julia Chu, Goodfight's creative director. “He does really, really beautiful work by hand, right down to the buttonholes. Dressing directors for the Oscars is not at all something he set out to do, but I think he's having a lot of fun with these outside-the-box projects.” 

In lieu of a traditional bowtie, Kurata opted to reference another element of Evelyn's costume—her jade necklace—by tracking down a beautiful jade bolo tie. “The one we ended up using is shaped like a jade bagel, which felt apropos for the movie," Chu says. “And it happens to be on a red rope with gold accents, which really plays off the embroidery on the arms.” 

Over the last half-decade, powered by its four founders—Lin, Chu, Nguyen, and the brand's CEO Christina Chou, who daylights as a major Hollywood agent for CAA—Goodfight has quickly established itself as one of the preeminent Asian American fashion labels, making clothes that reflect the third culture so many first- and second-generation immigrant kids grow up in. Goodfight had dressed Kwan for a handful of public appearances during Everything Everywhere's awards season run, but according to Lin, it was still a nice surprise to be asked to design his Oscars look after the film nabbed 11 nominations. 

“Daniel was approached by several major fashion houses, but he turned them down to stick with us,” Lin says, noting the impact a moment like this could have for a small, independent brand like Goodfight. Given just how damn good Kwan looked last night—and all the stage time he had to flex in his tux—it feels like both parties overdelivered on their ends of the bargain. “We're just so thankful to Dan and Shirley for believing in us and giving us the opportunity to be part of their special moment.”