In “What Not to Wear,” Stacy London and Clinton Kelly spent 10 years giving “tough love” to nominated participants, who were notably chosen for their questionable wardrobe choices. Now, in “Wear Whatever the F You Want,” the stylists are holding back criticism, biting their tongues “so hard that you think it’s going to bleed,” Kelly told WWD.
“When you take that approach to styling, where it’s client first, clients have opinions that you might not necessarily agree with, or taste that you don’t agree with. We’re all different people, right?” he said.
Available on Prime Video with eight episodes shot in New York City, “Wear Whatever the F You Want” is a makeover of the makeover show that made London and Kelly one of the most popular duos on television in the early noughties. In the new version, the goal is to celebrate individuality and let participants express themselves without dictating rules.
“You can’t say anymore, when it comes to personal taste and style, that someone’s right or wrong. It’s what makes them the happiest,” London said.
Stacy London and Clinton Kelly in “What Not to Wear” (2010).
©TLC/Courtesy Everett Collection
“What Not to Wear” aired on TLC from 2003 to 2013, a time when social media was still in its early stages and the fashion industry hadn’t been flooded with influencers.
“2003 was totally different. Nobody knew anything about fashion. We were experts. There were rules. It was a lesson in geometry and figuring out how to complement your body or look taller, look thinner,” London said. “Everybody has an opinion today. Ours is no more valid than anybody else’s, because it’s a different time. Social media has made it much more democratized. You can watch all the shows at the same time that Anna Wintour [Vogue’s editor-in-chief] is in the front row. And that gives you a certain amount of power over not necessarily responding to trends, but knowing what it is that you like and becoming more confident with that.”
“Wear Whatever the F You Want” brings a new dynamic to the makeover. Instead of being nominated by friends or family members to transform their wardrobes and style, participants nominate themselves. “You cannot change somebody who does not want to change. We had the opportunity to work with eight people who really want something different in their lives,” Kelly said.
Stacy London and Clinton Kelly in “Wear Whatever the F You Want” (2025).
Couresty of Prime Video
The new show showcases not only the participants’ transformations, but also the evolution of the stylist duo since “What Not to Wear” ended. “We’re gayer and grayer and just kinder and gentler,” Kelly said.
Looking back at their first show, London regrets giving age-related advice, such as “no miniskirts after 35.” Kelly has a different perspective. “Regret is a really tricky word, because we were products of the time, the show was a product of its time,” he said. “We might have said things that didn’t age well. But things don’t age well. Please show me something that ages well. Pick up a copy of Cosmopolitan from the ’80s. Tell me it aged well. Pick up a copy of Glamour from 2010. Did that age well? This is what life is like. We evolve. And so when we look back at our histories, sometimes we’re like, ‘Oh, I can’t believe we behaved that way,’ but we did.”
Over the last decade, London and Kelly were open about the ups and downs in their relationship. They reconnected during the COVID-19 pandemic after spending years without communicating.
“We have always, always had an incredible styling dynamic from the beginning of ‘What Not to Wear’ until the final episode of this show. We have always really loved the collaborative process together in the styling room,” Kelly said. “Now, have our personalities changed over the course of 22 years? A little bit. At our cores, we’re the same people, but we’ve had 22 years of life experience. So, do we agree on absolutely everything? No, but when we disagree now, I think we have enough respect for each other and don’t take it personally. That’s one of the benefits of getting older. You just stop taking s… personally.”
Stacy London and Clinton Kelly in “Wear Whatever the F You Want” (2025).
Couresty of Prime Video
“Clinton always says you cannot buy the kind of chemistry that we have. That’s not just on screen. It is this idea that there is a real synchronicity to the way that we think about styling and the way that we approach styling, and because we’ve done it so long together, I don’t think I could work with another stylist,” London said, jokingly adding that “Clinton can’t stand” their new work relationship “because I’m always trying to make out with him.”
