Honestly, most people think fashion documentaries are just B-roll of models walking in straight lines and designers crying over silk swatches. But when In Vogue: After the Runway hit Disney+ and Hulu, it felt different. It wasn't just another glossy retrospective. It was a loud, messy, and surprisingly honest look at the 1990s—a decade where fashion stopped being a niche hobby for the elite and became a global blood sport. If you’ve been following the cultural shift in how we consume "prestige" fashion content, this series is basically the Rosetta Stone.
The 90s were weird.
One minute you had the grunge movement making everyone want to look like they slept in a dumpster, and the next, Tom Ford was turning Gucci into a sex-fueled powerhouse. In Vogue: After the Runway captures that whiplash perfectly. It doesn’t just show the clothes; it shows the ego. It shows the sheer terror of Anna Wintour deciding whether your career is over before you’ve even had lunch.
The power shift most people missed
There is a specific moment in the series that talks about the 1994 Chanel show. It’s iconic now, but at the time, it was a gamble. You had Naomi Campbell and Linda Evangelista basically becoming more famous than the brands they were wearing. This is a huge theme in the show—the transition from the "clothes" being the star to the "person" being the brand.
Before this era, fashion editors were the gatekeepers. If you wanted to know what was "in," you waited for the physical magazine to arrive in the mail. In Vogue: After the Runway highlights how that wall started to crumble. We see the rise of the red carpet as a marketing tool. Suddenly, what Gwyneth Paltrow wore to the Oscars mattered more than what was on the cover of a magazine. It was the birth of the "viral moment" before the internet even knew what that was.
It’s kind of wild to see the behind-the-scenes footage of John Galliano at Dior. He wasn’t just making dresses; he was building sets that looked like movie studios. The series does a great job of showing how these designers became rock stars. But it also doesn't shy away from the darker side—the burnout, the pressure, and the way the industry chewed people up and spat them out.
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Why the 90s obsession isn't going away
You’ve probably noticed that every teenager on TikTok is trying to dress like it’s 1996. There’s a reason for that, and the documentary nails it. The 90s were the last decade of "analog cool."
The show dives deep into the "Heroin Chic" controversy. It’s an uncomfortable watch, but necessary. They interview Kate Moss, who reflects on that era with a mix of nostalgia and weariness. The industry was pushing a look that was, frankly, dangerous. In Vogue: After the Runway manages to critique the very industry it’s celebrating, which is a rare feat for a production that has Vogue's name on it. Usually, these things are just vanity projects. This one has teeth.
- Marc Jacobs getting fired from Perry Ellis for his grunge collection—which, looking back, was a genius move.
- The rise of hip-hop in high fashion, which the industry fought against for way too long.
- The tragic loss of Gianni Versace and how that changed the business side of fashion forever.
The series uses a non-linear approach that mirrors how we remember things. It’s a bit chaotic. It’s loud. It’s exactly like a backstage area three minutes before the lights go up.
The "Anna" Factor and the editing room
We have to talk about Anna Wintour. She’s the executive producer, so obviously, she comes off as the ultimate authority. But the series shows a slightly more human side—well, as human as a woman who wears sunglasses indoors can be. You see her navigating the shift from print dominance to the digital cliff.
There’s a great segment on the 1992 "Nofit" cover. It was a risk. It changed the game. It proved that Vogue wasn't just about showing rich people how to stay rich; it was about capturing the "vibe" of the moment. The documentary uses archival footage that hasn’t been seen in decades. Seeing a young Alexander McQueen pacing around his studio is haunting when you know how his story ends. It adds a layer of weight to the show that keeps it from being just a "best of" reel.
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Is it actually accurate?
Look, any documentary produced by the subject is going to have some bias. It’s a polished version of history. However, the inclusion of voices like Edward Enninful and Hamish Bowles adds enough journalistic integrity to make it feel "real." They admit when they were wrong. They talk about the elitism that almost killed the industry.
One of the most interesting parts of In Vogue: After the Runway is the focus on the "Supermodel" phenomenon. We see how Cindy Crawford and Christy Turlington became household names. It wasn't an accident. It was a calculated move to make fashion accessible. It worked. Suddenly, everyone wanted to know what was happening "after the runway." They wanted the gossip. They wanted the drama.
The shift to the "Entertainment" category
Fashion isn't just about business anymore. It’s entertainment. That’s why this series works so well on a streaming platform next to Marvel movies and true crime docs. The stakes feel just as high. When a collection fails, it’s not just a loss of money; it’s a public execution of a creative vision.
The series also spends time on the democratization of fashion. The Gap ads, the rise of "street style," and the way high-end designers started looking at what kids were wearing in London and New York. It flipped the script. Instead of the runway dictating the street, the street started dictating the runway. This is a crucial point that many other documentaries skip over because it hurts the "prestige" brand. But here, they lean into it.
Lessons for today's creators
If you’re a designer or a creator, there’s a lot to learn here. The main takeaway? Provocation wins. Every single person featured in the show who actually made a dent in history did something that people hated at first.
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- Stop playing it safe. The collections that are remembered 30 years later are the ones that caused riots or got people fired.
- Context is everything. A dress isn't just a dress; it’s a response to the economy, the music, and the politics of the time.
- Visual storytelling matters. The designers who succeeded were the ones who treated their shows like theater, not just a retail display.
The series wraps up by looking at how the 90s set the stage for the chaotic, influencer-driven world we live in now. It’s the origin story of the modern world. Without the 90s, we don't have the Met Gala as we know it. We don't have celebrity creative directors. We don't have the intersection of Hollywood and Paris that defines the current landscape.
How to use this knowledge
If you want to understand why people are still obsessed with this era, don't just look at the clothes. Look at the attitude. In Vogue: After the Runway proves that fashion is most interesting when it’s breaking its own rules.
To really get the most out of this historical perspective, you should look back at the original Vogue issues from 1993 to 1998. Compare the editorials to the "street style" sections. You’ll see the exact moment when the "After the Runway" culture took over. It’s the moment fashion stopped being about the "what" and started being about the "who."
Actionable Next Steps:
- Watch with a critical eye: Don't just look at the gowns. Watch the background of the runway shows. Look at the editors' faces. The real story is often in the front row, not the catwalk.
- Research the "Grunge" fallout: Look up the specific 1992 Perry Ellis collection by Marc Jacobs. Read the reviews from that time versus the retrospectives written today. It’s a masterclass in how "failure" is often just being too early.
- Study the photography: The series highlights photographers like Steven Meisel and Arthur Elgort. Their style defined the 90s. If you’re into visual arts, their use of lighting and "candid" staging is still the gold standard for high-fashion imagery today.
Fashion is a cycle, not a straight line. In Vogue: After the Runway is the perfect reminder that everything old will be new again—as long as it was bold enough to be hated the first time around.