In the final moments of “Feud: Capote vs. the Swans ,” episode seven, Tom Hollander’s Truman Capote is dying. His last words are “Beautiful Babe,” referencing his Swan Babe Paley, played by Naomi Watts .
The following episode, the season finale is aptly titled “Phantasm Forgiveness,” a dreamscape scenario that hops between the past, present and future. In an imagined scenario, Capote continues drafting his book “Answered Prayers” and imagines his character P.B Jones apologizing and making amends as he seeks forgiveness.
In the show, Capote betrays his close circle of New York’s high society circle of powerful women known as the Swans by publishing a story titled “La Côte Basque, 1965” in Esquire and revealing their secrets. The Swans include Babe, C.Z.
Guest ( Chloë Sevigny ) and Slim Keith (Diane Lane ). Speaking at Variety’s TV FYC Fest, executive producer and writer Jon Robin Baitz explained his approach to that final episode. “The women were rounder and smarter and had more soul.
In a way, he was giving those women an opportunity to redeem him.” He continued, “I tried to think of them as generous women in that episode ..
. Forgiveness is easier at a certain point in your life.” Baitz was joined by Lane and costume designer and producer Lou Eyrich .
Eyrich, who is Ryan Murphy’s go-to costume designer, had never worked in this era of New York society — the 1950s and 1960s — until this show. Speaking about her collaboration with Lan.
