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The Secrets Behind Lindsay Lohan’s Elizabeth Taylor Transformation

06/05/2012 at 04:30 PM ET

Lindsay Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor
Courtesy Lifetime

When Lindsay Lohan first walked onto the set of Lifetime’s Liz & Dick dressed as screen legend Elizabeth Taylor, “there was an audible gasp,” the movie’s costume designer, Salvador Pérez, tells PEOPLE. “You’d swear it was Elizabeth.”

Dressed in Taylor’s favorite styles — jewel-toned cocktail dresses, fur coats and those famous gems (well, good fakes) — the actress looked remarkably like her screen idol. “She just walked into the clothes and became Elizabeth Taylor,” says Pérez.

Producer Larry Thompson had some of Taylor’s most famous bling, including the 33-carat Krupp diamond, recreated for the film. “Part of the magic is the wardrobe,” he says. “And Lindsay said she wants to bring magic to the movie.” Many of the vintage dresses fit her like a glove, too; Lohan’s waist measures a tiny 23 inches, while Taylor’s was a mere 22 inches.

Lohan will wear 66 different looks in the 80-minute biopic, which begins in 1961, ends with Richard Burton’s death in 1984 and focuses on their tumultuous relationship (an affair while she was still married, two weddings and two divorces). To prep, Lohan hired a voice coach and even dyed her auburn hair a deep brunette to better match Taylor’s dark tresses.

Lohan’s hair and makeup will span all of Taylor’s looks, from the long lashes and red lips of the 1950s (attained using M.A.C’s “Hot Tahiti” lipstick) and the Cleopatra-inspired eyeliner and nude mouth of the ’60s to her teased ’80s bouffant, always with her trademark eyeliner to accentuate her famous violet eyes. (Lohan is wearing opalescent lavender contacts for the role.)

“She brings in makeup for me,” makeup artist Eryn Krueger Mekash, who’s using mostly Chanel, Dior and M.A.C products, tells PEOPLE. Adds the movie’s hair stylist, Beatrice De Alba, “She looks so much like her. There was a moment when she saw her picture on the monitor and said ‘I’m her.’ It was thrilling.”

–Liz McNeil, with reporting by K.C. Baker

SEE MORE STARS TRANSFORMED IN ‘LIGHTS! CAMERA! FASHION!’

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Showing 133 comments

kate on

Why are they doing the makeup of the 1950s when it says the film starts in 1961?

Masdar Akid (Beta) » Lindsay is elizabeth on

[...] “You’d swear it was Elizabeth…there was an audible gasp,” the movie’s costume designer, Salvador Pérez, told People. [...]

Linda on

I love Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton…So do Her and them justice Lohan! I don’t think anybody is going to look as gorgeous as Elizabeth but Hopefully Lohan’s acting will at least be good. I hope Lindsay has gotten her act together…it will be about time!

Lili on

She looks FAB!! People need to chill and leave her the heck alone!!

shoegal on

Here’s the thing, she doesn’t have to look exactly like Liz but you should see a similarity. Katie Holmes doesn’t look like Jackie O but when you saw the pics of her, you got the Jackie O vibe. I just see Lindsay Lohan w/ dark hair when I look at this pic.
But I hope she does well; she is a good actress but I still won’t watch it; not a fan of Lifetime movies.

Lindsay Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor: A Train Wreck Becomes an Icon on

[...] w&#1072&#1109 &#1072n audible gasp,” th&#1077 movie’s costume designer, Salvador Perez, wh&#959 gets a boatload &#959f [...]

meme on

she looks like sharon stone in a dark wig. can we say PHOTOSHOP because we all know Hohan looks rough.

Rona on

Not even close. I’ll pass on the movie too. Lohan has to do more than that to get an audience back.

m on

I don’t think she looks anything like Liz. I think she looks more like Joan Crawford and I also think this project is going to be a steaming pile of excrement.

– Lis on June 5th, 2012

HAHAHA I could not agree with you more. Well said.

FOR REAL THO.. on

WOW, THEY LOOK SO SIMILAR!!

HATERS GONNA HATE..

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