Star Wars: The Force Awakens costume designer Michael Kaplan has shed light on the origins of Captain Phasma's iconic costume, revealing the outfit was originally designed for Kylo Ren.

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"When I was trying to tackle Kylo Ren's character, I thought, what if he were The Lord of the Stormtroopers, in bright shining silver armor?" Kaplan explained in an interview with Clothes on Film . However, director J.J. Abrams shot down the look after seeing a sketch by one of Kaplan's concept artists.While Abrams didn't believe it was the right look for Ren, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy spotted the illustration on their design room wall and loved the look, saying: "What is that? It’s fantastic!" Following Kennedy's positive response to the sketch, Abrams created Captain Phasma and cast Gwendoline Christie for the part.Kaplan also discussed the creation of Kylo Ren's actual outfit, saying: "I had a take on Kylo Ren’s dark layered costume and hood, very early on." However, the helmet and face were two elements that proved to be more challenging."You have no idea how many designs and concepts we came up with that were shot down," he said of the helmet, noting he worked very closely with Abrams in creating its look. "It’s incredibly tough to come up with a mask that doesn’t feel derivative of an existing super hero or to another iconic reference."Kaplan also briefly discussed Ren's cloak, revealing it was made out of a woven cotton that had been lacquered. "I wanted it to have a sheen to give it life in all the darkly lit scenes I knew were coming," he said.For more on Star Wars: The Force Awakens' iconic villain, be sure to check out Adam Driver's hilarious SNL sketch in which Ren goes undercover on Starkiller Base

Alex Osborn is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter and subscribe to him on YouTube