Maya Hawke's Do Revenge Hair Remixes One Of Her Mom’s Iconic Looks

Teen movies have rules. Among them, you can’t take down the high school mean kids without infiltrating their clique thanks to a makeover (usually via montage). In Do Revenge, Netflix’s latest subversive, dark teen comedy, the makeover in question takes Eleanor, played by Maya Hawke, from organic cool girl to preppy and dangerous. Hawke’s new look isn’t just a character refresh, though; it also has some secret, fourth-wall-breaking shoutouts. In fact, Hawke’s Do Revenge hair was actually inspired by her mom, Uma Thurman, with a dash of Taylor Swift thrown in. Prepare for some light spoilers, but, more importantly, to have your mind blown by how this look came together.

Cat Quinn, beauty expert and self-described trend whisperer, was the first to call out Hawke’s referential look in an Instagram Reel posted on Monday, Sept. 19, featuring behind-the-scenes styling details Quinn learned during a discussion with Katie Ballard, Do Revenge’s hair designer. The color of Eleanor’s blonde hair was drawn from both Momma Thurman and Swift. Quinn reports that Ballard thought this shade “would compliment [Hawke’s] freckles but was light and bright enough to feel really toned and calculated.”

The blended Thurman-Swift shade looked so good, that I assumed it was Hawke’s natural hair color (insert joke about getting it from her momma). Turns out, though, it was actually a wig. And the wig’s color isn’t the only homage to Hawke’s mom, either. Thurman's fans may have noticed that Hawke’s cut mimics one of her mom’s most iconic characters: Mia Wallace from Pulp Fiction. The messy yet playful character is practically synonymous with the severe bob, and Hawke’s Eleanor got a very similar look. Sure, it was missing Mia’s wispy bangs, but the resemblance is clear as day.

As Stranger Things showed fans, Hawke has solid acting chops and, as such, can be excluded from any nepotism baby narratives, but I still have a bone to pick with her. If I was in a movie and was styled like my mom in the ‘90s, I would end up with a bowl cut. Hawke, instead, got a sharp, edgy bob that’s just as cool today as it was back during Pulp Fiction’s heyday.

Beyond being an adorable reference to her mega-famous mom, and the pop star who turned red scarves into red flags with a single music video, Eleanor’s look also relates to the character’s development. Throughout the candy-colored movie, Eleanor goes — or appears to go — from a messy, relaxed girl into someone trendy, calculating, and nefarious, a classic Mean Girls switch-a-roo. Nothing says, “I’m dangerous” quite like a sharp, short hairstyle. Truly, when Camila Mendes’ character Drea describes her new look as “high-status c*nt,” she wasn’t lying.