How Richard Gere’s ‘American Gigolo’ Suits Made Armani an Icon—‘I Don’t Know Any Other Designer’

The 1980 film American Gigolo established Richard Gere as a leading man and was highly influential for its mix of slick style and a dark plot. Written and directed by Taxi Driver scribe Paul Schrader, the film stars Gere as Julian Kay, a sex worker who finds himself framed for a murder he didn’t commit.

The world of American Gigolo, which is soundtracked by disco maestro Giorgio Moroder and features Blondie’s “Call Me” as its theme song, is peak ’80s luxury. Gere’s character lives in an elegantly appointed L.A. apartment and has a wardrobe of seductive Armani suits. Sadly, Giorgio Armani, who would become one of the most successful Italian fashion designers of all time, just passed away at 91 on September 4, so in his honor, we’re taking a look back at his iconic contribution to the film.

From an unknown to a fashion icon

American Gigolo provided a star-is-born moment for both Gere and Armani. Armani started his fashion line in 1975, and was relatively unknown at the time of the film. Originally, John Travolta was set to star as Julian, and as he was already a fan of the designer, his manager requested that he wear Armani’s clothes in the film. Travolta dropped out of the film following the death of his mother, and the role was then offered to Christopher Reeve and Chevy Chase. Both actors declined, and the part went to Gere, with Armani staying on as his costume designer. The rest is fashion history.

American Gigolo gave Armani his first costume designer credit, and by the year after the film was released, his fashion line’s sales, which were just $90,000 in 1976, jumped to $135 million. By the time of his passing, he was a billionaire. Following his cinematic debut, Armani created looks for films like The Untouchables (1987), The Dark Knight (2008), Inglorious Basterds (2009) and Elysium (2013), all while running a fashion empire.

Richard Gere and Giorgio Armani’s fashionable friendship

Given his racy role in American Gigolo, Gere had to look good, and while his nude scene (one of the first from a male star in a Hollywood film) got people talking, so did his stylish suits. The suits are immediately recognizable for their relaxed yet refined tailoring and muted color palettes, and they’re practically their own character in the film. As Schrader quipped in a GQ interview, “As an actor, Richard was more interested in the character than the clothes, but to me the clothes and the character were the same. I mean, this is a guy who does a line of coke in order to get dressed!”

Gere and Armani were forever linked in the public eye, as American Gigolo made them both stars. They remained friends after the film, and collaborated again on the 1992 erotic thriller Final Analysis. There’s even a long-running rumor that because of the impact American Gigolo had on the brand, Gere had the privilege of walking into any Armani store and getting whatever he wanted for free.

Armani credited Gere with making him famous, saying, “It was what I would call a crucial moment. Nobody could have imagined the success that film would have, which in fact marked the imagination of the ’80s, and it became an important vehicle for my fashion. He helped me to make myself known in the United States, where many requests for my clothes started to arrive.”

In a 2000 Vanity Fair interview, Gere spoke admiringly of Armani’s aesthetic, praising how the suits were “Quite stylized, big shoulders and thin waists, thin lapels. It was like looking at an old carpet where the natural colors blend and even bleed as opposed to some of these new carpets made of plastic fibers where the colors are monolithic,” and emphatically saying, “I don’t know any other designer.” The actor has continued to wear Armani suits throughout his career, and his American Gigolo looks have stayed on the vision boards of designers and menswear enthusiasts for decades.

Looking back on his work with Gere in 2017, Armani said, “Richard was a great example in that film. There was a certain sensuality in the way he moved and his character was an important symbol, precisely for the unconventional rebelliousness of his look. Since then, we’ve collaborated often and I’ve always admired him in his many other performances. He’s an immensely talented actor, aside from being extremely charming. But most importantly, he’s a man of great depth and diligence, and I’m proud of our friendship.”

45 years after American Gigolo hit the screen, the thriller’s fashions remain aspirational as ever, and Giorgio Armani’s glamorous legacy will continue to live on.