Sixteen suits for the Grandmaster Guard (led, in fine form, by Jeff Goldblum) were manufactured in four different colours, complete with custom-molded rubber cast components. Dipping into the Workshop paintbox, the crew brought the armour’s unique cyber-futuristic aesthetic to life in yellow, red, green, and purple. “This is,” according to Supervising Production Manager Danielle Prestidge, “probably the most amount of colour we’ve used on a costume job.”

For the main man himself, the Workshop created a form-fitting gladiator helmet complete with wing cheek guards that move up and down. Several costume components were also created as a reference for the film’s cutting-edge visual effects. For Taika, that meant a Lycra suit for motion capture, overlaid with foam sculpted forms. Says Lans: “Taika actually plays one of the characters in the movie…and we made him this amazing rock suit out of foam latex to help him get into character.” In the case of the Hulk’s helmet, the brief was simple: Go Big or Go Home. Using 3D printing technology, Weta Workshop’s technicians crafted an enormous 1:1 scale helmet and pauldron far bigger than any ordinary mortal could wear.