Light spoilers for Season 4 of Sex Educationare ahead. If you aren’t caught up, you can stream the final season of the series with a Netflix subscription.
When I picture the cast of Sex Education, and their incredible styles, the first thing that pops into my mind is Otis Milburn’s white, red and blue Neopolitan-like jacket that he wears in literally every, single season of the Netflix hit. At this point, Asa Butterfield‘s character’s style is synonymous with that coat, and it’s become a funny detail that fans love. However, as the costume designer for the new season on the 2023 TV schedule revealed to CinemaBlend, there’s actually a serious and deep reason why the sex therapist still wears that jacket after all these years.
While speaking with CinemaBlend about Season 4 of Sex Education, the costume designer, Daniella Pearman shared her take on Otis’ jacket. Many of the characters in the dramedy are known for their unique and edgy styles, and they have evolved over the seasons, especially Eric, Maeve and Amiee. However, Otis’ look stays the same, and that coat is a constant. According to Pearman keeping the item was an obvious decision as she told me:
So basically, this coat is hired from a costume house. And it is so iconic. It’s a vintage coat. Obviously, you can’t get hold of the original. And it is such an iconic coat that we didn’t want to get rid of it, it would seem insane to get rid of it.
I agree, it would seem insane to get rid of it. At this point, when I think about Otis Milburn, I think about him in that coat. However, other than it simply being an iconic piece of Sex Education generally, there’s also a deeper meaning to it and the lack of evolution in the teen’s style.
In Season 4, he’s dealing with a new school, a new sibling, and new competition when it comes to his sex therapy practice at school. With all this pressure, Pearman explained that Butterfield’s character wouldn’t have the time or energy to update his wardrobe. She said:
Also, when you look at Otis’ arc in this series – there are only eight weeks between the end of series three [and] the beginning of series four. And in that time, his mum’s just had a baby, so there’s a new baby in the house. He’s helping her out, because, she’s got a lot on, she’s struggling. He’s had a lot on as a teenager, kind of like looking after his mum, helping her out with Joy. And then obviously, as it goes on, you do see that everyone around him is kind of moving on and moving forward.
While the plot of Sex Education clearly shows how Otis is kind of stuck in the past while his friends are moving forward, his wardrobe emphasizes it. Pearman went through how other characters’ looks evolved, noting that Maeve going to America allowed her to grow, Eric found new friends and ways of expressing himself, and Aimee is on this new journey as an artist. All of these developments have led to changes in their wardrobe that reflect said growth. However, when it comes to Otis, he’s a bit stuck this season.
Pearman explained how they used this fact to influence his fashion in the show, and the choice to keep that iconic coat in the character’s closet. She said:
[Otis is] stuck there, kind of mourning Maeve, kind of dealing with home life. And then he’s got the issue of, O, the new sex therapist and dealing with that. So, we just said: ‘When would he change his look? Like, it wouldn’t be right.’
Even though I think we’ve all (including the characters) gotten a good laugh out of Otis’ jacket and how he constantly wears it, the reasoning behind it is actually quite deep. Pearman’s logic for keeping the coat makes so much sense, and it really helps emphasize the challenges Asa Butterfield’s character faces in Season 4.
If you haven’t watched the fourth and final season of Sex Education yet, make sure to note what you need to remember about past seasons, and check out the dramedy on Netflix now.