As part of our Supreme 25th Anniversary features, each month we will be bringing you a closer look celebrating Supreme. This month we’re taking an in-depth look at film influences on Supreme.
Looking back over the last 25 years, one of the defining factors of Supreme has been their ability to take inspiration from something and make it more or less their own. As a brand that’s seemingly pulled from seeming every corner that exists in culture, films have constantly lent their hands to Supreme as a source of inspiration. Throughout the years, Supreme has both come together for official collaborations with films like Scarface and taken references unofficially from movies like Goodfellas. Scroll down to check out a few films referenced by some of your favorite Supreme pieces.
The Killer
Official Collaboration
View this post on Instagram
Supreme’s most recent film collaboration comes as a partnership with Chinese filmmaker, John Woo, Director of the 1989 film, The Killer. The film is widely credited as John Woo’s breakout film, leading to his work on movies like Mission: Impossible 2 and Faceoff. The collaboration’s pulled several stills from the film as well as the quotes from the film to create graphics featured on tees, hoodies, skate decks, and M-65 jackets. Shop a selection of the capsule below and the whole thing here.
Akira
Official Collaboration
Supreme had collaborated on manga/ anime inspired collections before their Akira collaboration but the collaboration with the iconic film was certainly their largest with the Japanese art form. Widely considered to be the series that introduced the art form to the Western World, Akira’s influence has been undeniable. The Supreme collection features original artwork from the series and film plastered on a full assortment of apparel honoring iconic scenes from both the manga and the film. Shop highlights from the collection below and the entire collection on StockX here.
Scarface
Official Collaboration
It would be impossible for a brand from New York, that represents New York as Supreme does, to not include some kind of mob reference or homage. In the past, Supreme has enlisted subtle nods from films like Goodfellas (mentioned below) and King Of New York but their official collaboration with Scarface took it to a completely different level. The collection itself was huge, featuring a leather jacket, sweater, hockey jersey, two different hoodies, four graphic tees, a beanie, skate decks, and even a desk lamp. The tees and hoodie feature several iconic stills and quotes from the film. Shop a selection of the collaboration below and the entire collection here.
Kids
Official Collaboration
On the 20th Anniversary of the movie’s release, Supreme came together with Director, Larry Clark, to release a small capsule commemorating the cult classic film. This was Supreme’s second time collaborating with the director, who ten years earlier worked with Supreme on a NSFW Calendar as well as several equally NSFW tees. The Kid’s collaboration featured several iconic screen caps lifted and set to skate decks, tees, and hoodies. On the back of each article of clothing are two simple sentences, Casper’s last words, “Jesus Christ. What happened?”. Shop a selection of the collaboration below and the whole capsule here.
Taxi Driver
Unofficial Collaboration (Reference)
Five years ago, in 2014, in honor of their 20th anniversary, Supreme released several iconic pieces (which you can read about in February’s featured content piece). Among these was the Taxi Driver tee, one of the tees released on Supreme’s opening day in 1994. The tee famously features Robert Deniro’s character reaching inside his jacket. The brand has become famous for its love of the film, having been cited as having the movie playing in the store while patrons shop and 2014 would mark the second time that the tee would be released. We’ve added the Taxi Driver Tee in honor of this content piece and it can be shopped here.
Silence Of The Lambs
Unofficial Collaboration (Reference)
Supreme’s old creative director, Angelo Baque (now working on AwakeNY), has been widely documented as a lamenter of the Supreme customer’s inability to pick up on a reference. The brand’s SS15 reference to the 1991 film, Silence Of The Lambs, may have been one of those reference he laments over. The “Moth Tee” features multiple of the moths from the cover of the film, seemingly flying over the shirt. The word Supreme is printed on the left chest, in a font of the same color and in similar style of the wording on the cover of the film as well. We’ve added the Moth Tee in honor of this content piece and it can be shopped here.
Goodfellas
Unofficial Collaboration (Reference)
You’d think after all these years, Supreme would’ve finally collaborated with Goodfellas officially. As the second featured mob movie referenced in this piece, Supreme’s pulled three separate references from the classic film. The first, is relatively obvious and widely distributed, Supreme’s famous motion logo pays homage to the opening scene of the Scorcese film. The motion logo was first released in 1998, but has since been revived multiple times for hoodies, tees, and jackets.
