Creating The Makeup Looks For White Chicks

In the 2004 comedy film White Chicks, Shawn and Marlon Wayans play FBI agents who disguise themselves as two rich, white, blonde, blue-eyed hotel-heiress sisters. The makeup process to transform the actors into their on-screen characters was extensive and challenging. Greg Cannom, the special makeup creator, described the process as grueling, involving life-mask sculptures, plaster casts, clay sculptures, and overlapping foam prosthetic appliances. The actors spent up to seven hours in the makeup chair each day, enduring body painting, eye and wig adjustments, and painful blue scleral contact lenses. The final result was a convincing transformation that even surprised the makeup artist himself.

The process of applying the makeup

The makeup process for White Chicks was extensive and challenging, requiring up to seven hours of daily application for the Wayans brothers. The process began with life-mask sculptures of the actors, which were used to create clay moulds of their features. From these moulds, Greg Cannom, the special makeup creator, crafted overlapping foam prosthetic appliances. The prosthetics were designed to alter the actors' masculine features, particularly focusing on the top lip, forehead, chin, cheeks, and nose to create a more feminine appearance.

Cannom emphasised the precision required in this process, noting that even a slight deviation in the placement of the foam prosthetics could impact the overall outcome. The makeup application also included body painting, which took up to 90 minutes, and the use of blue scleral contact lenses that covered the entire eye, helping to brighten the whites of the eyes.

To complete the transformation, the actors wore straight blonde wigs, which served to hide the sides of their faces and necks, further enhancing the illusion of femininity. The hair and makeup were carefully balanced to avoid a drag queen aesthetic, instead aiming for a high-society debutante look.

The entire process was physically demanding for the actors and the makeup team, requiring touch-ups throughout the day due to eating, drinking, and sleep deprivation. Despite the challenges, the final result was impressive, with the actors themselves joking and "mugging around" despite the gruelling nature of the transformation.

The challenges of creating the makeup

The 2004 comedy film "White Chicks" features two black male FBI agents, played by brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans, who go undercover as two rich, white sisters. The makeup and prosthetics used to transform the Wayans brothers into convincing white women were extensive and time-consuming, and the process presented several challenges.

One of the biggest challenges was the sheer amount of time required to apply the makeup and prosthetics each day. The actors spent up to seven hours in the makeup chair, with later reports stating that this time was reduced to five hours. This included three hours of makeup application, 90 minutes of body painting, and 30 minutes to perfect the eyes and wigs. The process was so lengthy that the actors often had to sacrifice sleep, and if they ate or drank anything, they required touch-ups.

Creating a believable female face on top of a larger male face was a significant challenge, as Greg Cannom, the special makeup creator, explained: "I'm trying to add on a smaller, female face to a larger male face. You want it to all blend. Altering the top lip and the nose were the most important things to change. Male and female top lips are very different." The blue scleral contact lenses, which covered the whole eye, were also a source of irritation for the actors, and they had to be worn all day.

The process of designing the makeup and prosthetics was also challenging. Cannom started by casting each actor's head in plaster to create clay sculptures of their features. From these sculptures, he created overlapping foam prosthetic appliances. This process took six weeks of testing just to perfect the body makeup.

The final challenge was ensuring that the overall look did not veer into drag territory, as director Keenan Ivory Wayans did not want a drag aesthetic. Cannom and hairstylist Linda Villalobos had to strike a balance, as Cannom explained: "The more eye makeup they wore and the more hair we put on the top of their heads, the more they started looking like big-haired drag queens."

Despite the challenges, the makeup and prosthetics were successful in transforming the Wayans brothers, with Cannom himself being surprised at the results: "The first time I saw Marlon in full makeup with the contacts in, was the first time in my life I’ve been absolutely shocked... There was no trace of Marlon."

The pain and irritation caused by the makeup

The makeup used in White Chicks to transform the Wayans brothers into the Wilson sisters was a notable element of the film. The process was lengthy and gruelling, taking up to seven hours a day, and involving buckets of acrylic paint, extensive prosthetics, and contact lenses that caused pain and irritation.

The actors, Shawn and Marlon Wayans, spent around five hours in the makeup trailer each day for 60 days. This included three hours of makeup, 90 minutes of body painting, and 30 minutes to perfect the eyes and wigs. The blue scleral contact lenses, in particular, caused significant irritation as they covered the whole eye and had to be worn all day. Shawn Wayans compared them to the type of lenses used "to get information out of al-Qaeda".

The process of applying the makeup was challenging and tedious for both the actors and the makeup artists. Greg Cannom, the special makeup creator/applicator, described the experience as "grueling", explaining that even the smallest mistake could ruin the entire look. The makeup also impacted the actors' sleep and ability to eat and drink.

To create the White Chicks look, Cannom first cast each actor's head in plaster to create clay sculptures of their features. From these sculptures, he crafted overlapping foam prosthetic appliances that would fit the actors' faces perfectly. The process was made more difficult by the need to make masculine faces look feminine, requiring alterations to the top lip, forehead, and nose. Male and female top lips are very different, and Cannom had to use a smaller, female face on a larger male face, blending the features seamlessly.

The paint used to change the actors' skin tone was also challenging. Cannom experimented with various colours before settling on an orange-ish pax paint, an acrylic adhesive mixture that could completely cover dark skin. However, if applied too thickly, it would wrinkle like latex. This was followed by a thick coat of light makeup to soften the shine of the paint.

The extensive makeup process for White Chicks caused pain and irritation for the actors and required significant time and effort from the makeup artists. The final result, however, was convincing enough that even Cannom did not recognise the actors when they were in full makeup.

The time spent in the makeup chair

The makeup process for White Chicks was extensive and time-consuming, with the actors spending up to seven hours a day in the makeup chair. This included three hours of makeup application, 90 minutes of body painting, and 30 minutes to perfect the eyes and wigs. The process was described as grueling by both the actors and the makeup artists, requiring early mornings and late nights, with little sleep in between.

To create the White Chicks characters, the makeup team, led by Greg Cannom, started by casting each actor's head in plaster to create life-mask sculptures. From these sculptures, they made clay models of the actor's features, which were used to create moulds for the overlapping foam prosthetic appliances. Cannom notes the importance of getting the three-dimensional likeness right, as even a slight misalignment could ruin the entire effect. The prosthetics were made from silicone and glued to the actor's faces, with foam latex used for the forehead, under the lip, and the nose.

The body makeup alone took six weeks of testing to perfect, and the entire process required a significant amount of trial and error. The actors wore blue scleral contact lenses, which covered their entire eyes and caused some irritation. Wigs were also an important part of the transformation, helping to hide the sides of their faces and necks. The makeup and wigs were so convincing that even Cannom, the creator, was surprised by the results and did not immediately recognize the actors.

The process of transforming the actors into their female characters was challenging, as Cannom noted the difficulty of making male-to-female and African-American-to-white transitions. The actors also had to work on their voices to create high-pitched tones for their characters, and they underwent physical transformations, with Shawn shedding 30 pounds and Marlon trimming down to fit into the clothing of their female characters.

Overall, the time spent in the makeup chair for White Chicks was a significant and demanding aspect of the film's production, requiring dedication and patience from both the actors and the makeup artists. The final result, however, was a convincing transformation that contributed to the humour and success of the film.

The people behind the makeup

To create the White Chicks characters, Cannom cast each actor's head in plaster and used the cast to make clay sculptures of their features. He then created a mold from the sculpture to make overlapping foam prosthetic appliances. The process was challenging, as Cannom explains: "I'm trying to add on a smaller, female face to a larger male face. You want it to all blend. Altering the top lip and the nose were the most important things to change. Male and female top lips are very different."

The actors, Shawn and Marlon Wayans, spent around five hours a day in the makeup trailer for 60 days, undergoing three hours of makeup, 90 minutes of body painting, and 30 minutes to perfect the eyes and wigs. The blue scleral contact lenses, in particular, were uncomfortable for the actors, as they covered their whole eyes.

The process of transforming the Wayans brothers, who are African-American, into white females was described as "grueling" by Cannom, who had to recreate the looks daily. The actors also had to lose weight and change their voices to fit the roles.

Despite the challenges, Cannom was successful in his endeavour, as the Wayans brothers were convincing in their roles, with Cannom himself being surprised by the transformation: "The first time I talked to Marlon in full makeup, it really freaked me out. His voice was coming out of it."

Frequently asked questions