Aahana Swrup
Glenn Close dons a distinctive look for her character Alberta in Lee Daniels’ horror film ‘The Deliverance.’ The story revolves around a struggling family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who find themselves facing the unknown when uncanny occurrences start unfolding in their house. As Ebony Jackson watches her kids, Andre, Nate, and Shante, behave erratically under an unseen spirit’s control, inconceivable truths about the demonic hold on the family reveal themselves. In the midst of this taut family situation, Ebony also sports a strained relationship with her newly religious mother, Alberta, who is undergoing chemotherapy. Naturally, as we follow Alberta’s story, her unique taste in wigs and casual appearance with a shaved head is bound to incite intrigue about Glenn Close’s potential cosmetic transformation for the film.
Glenn Close Did Not Shave Her Head in Real Life
In ‘The Deliverance,’ the Jackson family’s paranormal problems overtake their lives so much that complications that would’ve otherwise dominated a family’s life end up taking a backseat. For the same reason, while Alberta’s battle with cancer remains a visible aspect of the story, it is easily overshadowed by whatever lurks in the house’s basement. Still, instances of her visiting the clinic for her chemo sessions and shots of lounging in the house without a wig on remain consistent reminders of her medical condition. Nevertheless, while Alberta’s cancer treatments led her to maintain a shaved head, Glenn Close didn’t shave her own head for the role.
‘The Deliverance’ was reportedly filmed in mid-2022. Through Close’s active social media presence, we can swiftly confirm that the actress never underwent any atypical hair transformations during this time. Instead—much like her character, she also went with a wig. Therefore, it is likely that bald caps, makeup, and special effects were used to help the actress achieve her character’s look in the scenes wherein Alberta can be seen with her shaved head. Likewise, throughout the film, Close also presumably wore a wig to replicate Alberta’s blonde curls.
The Relevance of Alberta’s Unique Look
In ‘The Deliverance,’ Glenn Close’s character, Alberta, occupies a unique space within her community. As the white mother of a half-black daughter with black grandkids, the older woman fits in the local African-American community as seamlessly as she stands out. For the same reason, her visual aesthetic is defined by a specific style of makeup and fashion choices. By extension, her wig preferences also remain a deliberate choice in establishing her character’s role within the narrative.
“The character (Alberta) is based on a character that so many people in the Black community know,” Director Lee Daniels told Indie Wire in a conversation about Close’s character. “She’s based on white women that just live in a Black world— that have Black kids, that have immersed themselves into Black culture, and are loved by Black people.” As a result, Alberta’s inclination toward extravagant, notable wigs and headscarves presents a visual indication of her immersion and appreciation of the same African American culture that she is regularly entrenched in.
“We specifically went out to make her (Alberta) dress like the women I know, the women I grew up with that only dated Black men, that were of the culture,” shared Daniels, “Hoops, cutoff jeans, stuff that didn’t fit her at all. Poor Glenn! She’s a trooper. First, she didn’t go with it. She was like, wait, what? I told her to gain weight, and after I told her to gain weight, I then went in and downplayed (the wardrobe). I had the costume department tailor everything in. She was like, wait, what? I wanted cellulite, and I wanted it all up.”
Consequently, even though Alberta’s role didn’t come with a drastic hair transformation for Close in real life—save for the wigs she employed—the actress certainly underwent a prominent physical transformation. Ultimately, from her hair to her makeup, each aspect of Alberta’s physical appearance informs her character’s personality at large. Therefore, the efforts of the production’s head hairstylist, Rachel Busby, in creating the look for Alberta paid off.
Read More: The Deliverance: Is St. Anthony’s Children’s Hospital a Real Hospital in Pennsylvania?
