In this essay, Teen Vogue’s Catherine Mhloyi shares her experience as an extra on the set of The Buccaneers season 2.
As I walked up the grand sandstone staircase carrying the hem of my floor length gown in my hands, I glanced over my shoulder, and time suspended. Dozens of people in Gilded Age-inspired jewel-toned formalwear moved in tetris piece formations around me. I crossed into the ballroom, greeting each and every partygoer with a smile and nodding the way I imagined nobility ought, and then I turned to face the sun. “This is it, my fairytale moment,” I thought to myself, not truly knowing which part was the true fairytale: the romance and the intrigue of attending a 19th century ball — or the magic and limelight of Hollywood, the covert camera operators in the wings and camera rigs and boom mics scraping the sky.
Then the director yelled “Cut!” and everything happened to me all over again.
Last October, I had the pleasure of flying to Glasgow for the opportunity of a lifetime, the chance to be an extra on the set of Apple TV+’s YA period drama, The Buccaneers, for season 2. Working in media, press trips can be pretty par for the course: fly out, do interviews, come back and deliver. This trip, however, was different — I was in the action as much as covering it.
The Buccaneers, based on the novel by Edith Wharton, is the scandalous and glamorous tale of a group of young American women in the 1870s who travel to London to secure rich husbands, much to the distaste of London’s upper crust. It’s a Bridgerton-esque tale set about 50 years after, starring Kristine Froseth, Alisha Boe, Aubri Ibrag, Josie Totah, and Imogen Waterhouse. While filming its second season, The Buccaneers gave me a chance to have a “North American scum” moment of my own.
I had no clue what to expect from Scotland, where the show is actually filmed, or from being on a major television production in general. In leaving New York for a foreign land full of romantic architecture, misty weather, and rich, cobblestoned history, I couldn’t help but feel myself dissolve in the story of Annabel St. George and her rambunctious group of friends. Just like Nan, I had no interest in finding a husband, and if we truly were friends, I know she would’ve been jealous that my journey began with a job and a purpose while she is just now finding one herself, but she and I both knew that no matter what was waiting for us on the other side of the Atlantic, it would be an adventure.
TikTok content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
The day I arrived, I was taken to my hotel by a charming driver who was equally excited and anxious on my behalf to learn that I was American. He was full of stories about A-list clients and popular tourist attractions as well as questions about how I was coping with the impending election that was proving to be more overcast than the United Kingdom in the fall.
The next day began with a fitting with The Buccaneers’s award-winning costume designer, Kate Carin.
It would be a lie if I said that I had no reservations about being an extra in a period piece. As a plus-size woman, I’ve had nothing but bad experiences when it comes to anything requiring a dress code (theme parties, for example), and I had less than a month to shop and prepare. In photo shoots, I’m often cast aside, placed in the back, adorned in “stretchy” clothes, and basically made into a prop. A huge part of me believed that this wouldn’t be any different, and that I would be immortalized on the small screen in something that either didn’t fit or looked like its main purpose was to give the illusion of there being less of me.
I’m so glad I took the risk.
Kate and her whole team lit up when they saw me and welcomed me with open arms. They told me how excited they were when they found out about my role after they saw my Instagram page, which immediately got them inspired. The giant fuschia satin dress (which I’m pretty sure could stand up on its own) embodied the spirit of the show and of the main characters: loud, unabashed, and unapologetic, a spirit I share and that the team saw in me, too.
The next day, the PR team and I set off for Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfries, aka Tintagel Castle, where we joined a group of influencers who were also there to be extras in the show. We took a tour of the grounds, did a hair and makeup test, and got a sneak peek of an earth-shattering scene between Lizzy (Ibrag) and Theo (Guy Remmers).
Emmy-winning hair and makeup artist Jenny Rhodes-McLean had the impossible task of turning my knee-length blonde and blue ombre box braids style into something that could reasonably be seen in the background of a palace ball in 19th century England. This was yet another situation where, as a Black woman, I was wary about whether or not the team was equipped to accommodate me. Jenny, however, already had a plan and a team full of amazing Black women with wills and ways. I watched them transform my modern Pinterest-inspired look into a romantic and noble adornment.
The next day we were up bright and early. I was in the hair and makeup chair for two and half hours, but thankfully I had such gentle treatment that I slept the entire time. Afterwards I was vacuum-sealed into a corset with help from someone in the costume department, and we made our way towards the castle.
The influencers and I were stationed at various points in front of the castle. I was on the stairs and my role was to gossip with the other party-goers and climb the stairs to enter the ball after Lizzy and Mabel (Totah) left the carriage and reached the threshold of the entrance. I already knew that acting was a taxing, tedious, and physical job, but I didn’t know just how much went into a 45-second sequence — it felt like hours. I am both in awe and in pain thinking about what it takes to do that every day, in corsets no less, for months on end.
When I finally got out of the corset and the many layers of clothing on top of it, I let out a huge sigh of relief. Not just because my ribs were able to expand enough to do that but because I was now part of something so special, and so far beyond anything I thought I’d be able to do in my life. When I saw myself in that scene, even though it was for three seconds, a wave of pure joy came over me.
The real fairytale moment was the opportunity for everyone to see me the way I’ve always seen myself, as fearless and stylish and unashamed. Whether it’s 1870 or 2025, many of us, especially women, are taught that it’s not okay to be and feel that way. Thankfully The Buccaneers was able to do that for me without me having to marry a Duke (sorry Nan). Now no matter what happens or how the world changes its views on fatness and Blackness, I will never forget the time that I was an extra — but I was also a main character.
