How do Colman Domingo's costumes add to Muncie Daniel's character in The Madness? Explored in depth

Colman Domingo has been getting a lot of praise for skillfully playing Muncie Daniels in the Netflix show The Madness. His character's outfits, designed by Avery Plewes, show that he has won battles inside and outside himself.

He changes from wearing a suit to a more relaxed style, like he's letting go of his identity as a CNN analyst and academic to return to his true self.

According to Plewes,

“Muncie’s costumes were a major tool for Colman’s character arc. He uses his closet as armor when we first meet him.”

This is his struggle between what society expects and his true self. Domingo's thoughtful choices in his clothing make this change even more noticeable.

He got ideas from movies like Three Days of the Condor to make Muncie look like an "everyman," with well-fitted clothes and careful selections to show how he sees himself changing. Even when things get really wild, Plewes says, Muncie keeps a sense of style that shows his ongoing complexity.

Muncie’s professional image on The Madness is an armor

In the early episodes of The Madness, Muncie's clothes reflect his status and the image he has created. He usually wears high-end suits from brands like Tom Ford and Hermés, along with fashionable accessories that show his influence and sophistication. These choices show the polished person Muncie is, known as a respected scholar and media specialist.

His tailored outfits are like a shield that protects him from the weaknesses of being far from his family and community. The designer says that Muncie's work clothes are like "armor," showing his need to keep control in an uncertain world.

For example, at a family barbecue, Muncie appears wearing a Tom Ford trucker jacket and John Elliott pants. He's casual yet chic. He seems to be struggling with the differences between his private life and his public image. The way he carefully chooses what's fashionable or meaningful to him shows the contrast between his ordinary start and his rise to success.

We see Muncie go from stylish suits to messy sweatpants on The Madness

The story of The Madness often puts Muncie in risky situations, so he changes his appearance. He no longer wears fancy sweatsuits and stylish pants. Instead, he dresses in simple clothes and shoes that look like Crocs.

Plewes has stated that this shift shows Muncie's loss of control and respect, a matching breakdown in himself.

“He ends up in sweatpants and more relaxed clothing, but they’re still designer,” she said.

This shows that he cannot break free from his polished tastes.

Domingo's personal touch is what influenced this part of the story, making sure each outfit showcased how Muncie was feeling. Even when he wanted to fit in by buying some plain New York City tee shirt, it showed how he couldn't completely lose that image he had so diligently constructed.

His Ray-Ban glasses during these times are little hints of his old life—a man stuck in limbo between normal and special.

Restoring Muncie's identity with a synthesis of old and new on The Madness

In the last episodes of The Madness, Muncie's wardrobe ends in the reintegration of elements of his former life and his new reality; mixing well-furnished Sebastian Richard Espinosa suits with more trivial, useful items. This is part of his process of acceptance towards himself and a reunion with his family and community.

Plewes observed that Muncie's final looks represent:

“A man who has found clarity amid chaos.”

This also speaks to broader themes about identity and power, especially for Black men in relation to societal expectations. Domingo's over-the-top acting on The Madness, with Plewes' wise costuming, speaks to the difficulties of being different in a society that requires conformity.

As Domingo himself commented,