All the Best 2022 Pop Culture Moments to Turn Into Your Halloween Costume
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Ok, so it's basically Halloween, and you don't have a costume yet—but you're in luck, because 2022 gave us about a million pop culture costume ideas (and we thought 2021 Halloween costumes were wild!!). The joy of timely costumes comes down to two *critical* factors: 1) Is it obvious, at least to people who get it, who you're trying to be? Do you have enough of the elements to pull off the TV/movie/celebrity "moment" without having to explain it to everyone you meet? and 2) Is it recent enough for people to go, "Oh yes, I remember that!!" instead of having to wrack their brains for something that happened two years ago?
Great news: I have a definitive list to get you started on what pop culture moments deserve your time, attention, and money to pull off. A lot of these are relatively easy to pull off with some things you have at home—you might just need to order a fun wig and specific top. Others are a lil more in-depth but offer the opportunity to make your friends oooh and ahhhh at your originality. Considering that a lot of people (including one of my besties) start planning their costumes in *February*, the bar's pretty high for pulling off something fun and fresh. Also! Lots of these have rush shipping. Just sayin'.
Don't panic—one of these 35 options should work. Let me know how it goes, bbs! (Also, if you're trying to find more Halloween office-friendly costumes, we have that list for you too. And Just Like That is on there, naturally.)
Florence Pugh in Venice
Sailing through all the Don't Worry Darling drama like the GD queen she is, you just need purple PJs, a matching bag, and sunnies (oh yea, and a drink to toast to your general badassery). It's a bit of a deep cut except for people who get pop culture, but isn't that the fun part?
Eddie Munson
Stranger Things' fave character is probably *the* go-to Halloween character. Get a popular Hellfire Club tee and a frizzy brunette wig (bonus points if you can get your own hair to be that voluminous), then become obsessed with your electric guitar and new nerdy friends. You could also go as Hopper, but you'd have to shave your head and get absolutely shredded, soooo.
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Michelle Yeoh's a total badass in this, and there are approximately a million costumes to choose from. The easiest, obviously, is probably the floral top, plum-colored vest, and googly eye (plus glasses on a chain!) she spends a chunk of the movie wearing. Or, go as Jamie Lee Curtis in a frumpy wig and vest! Really lean in, you know what I mean?
Austin Butler's Elvis
Easily the most transformative role this year, Butler totally *became* Elvis—OTT outfits, hair swish, pelvis thrusts, and all. Since this is a biopic, you have a wealth of costume options to choose from—but sticking to the pink suit from the trailer will make you instantly recognizable.
Kate Bush
I really liked this season of Stranger Things, apparently. Also, if you really enjoy (and wear) gray—guess what, this costume is tailor-made for you. Add in some big '80s hair and someone to carry you around while you dance, and your costume is basically all set.
Barry
Everyone's favorite assassin and terrible actor was back for a typically awesome (and ~dramatic~) season. Barry's clothes aren't really notable, but the gun, deadpan, and blood splatter definitely are. If you wanna mix it up character-wise, go as Noho Hank (you gotta buy a bald cap), Sally at her premiere, or the increasingly unhinged Cousineau.
Barbarian
The surprise horror movie hit of the year, don't read this unless you've watched it (for spoiler reasons). You could either go as the scrappy and resilient Tess, the secretly evil AJ (Justin Long), or the terrifying Mother. You will scare the sh*t out of everyone—including people who have no idea who you are—if you pick that last one.
Julia Fox
Dress yourself in head-to-toe denim (including pointy denim boots), do a deep, smokey black cat eye, and wander about saying, "Uncut Geeehhhhhms." People will know...exactly who you are. (Note: the jacket with boob darts might be a smidge hard to find, so we opted for a simple matching cropped jacket and jeans.)
Nope
There are plenty of iconic characters in this layered Jordan Peele movie, but TBH, I think you should go all out and dress up as the alien. (I'm totally kidding, going as Ricky, OJ, Rita, or literally any of the humans would be way easier.) Emerald's got a cool, eclectic style (a lot of which was made custom), particularly her green jersey and yellow bandana in that climactic scene.
Jackass Forever
Similarly, this is mostly about dressing up in regular person clothing but then adding in the wildcard factor (a terrifying bear! A snake!) and running around pretending to pull pranks on each other. This is a ~fun~ group costume.
Anna Delvey
2022 was the year of our fascination with swindlers and con artists (move over, Joe Exotic, because the Tinder Swindler is coming for ya). Anna's probably the most iconic and easiest to dress up as, especially since she goes through multiple hair colors (and luxurious outfits) (and accents) throughout the series. Worst case, dress up as her in thick glasses and a prison outfit!
Elizabeth Holmes
Similarly!! I'm adding Holmes here because if all you have is a black turtleneck and pants, platinum blonde hair or wig, and a red lip, you can pull this off. You can always go as Amanda Seyfried AS Holmes in The Dropout in case you want to make it a bit more connected to 2022.
Timothée Chalamet
Our prince has blessed us with a bunch of amazing outfits this year (seriously, go back and remind yourself of the iconic looks), but my money's on that red satin backless number. How are we not replicating that look 24/7??
A Celeb at the VMAs
Of the awards shows this year, it's either the Met Gala or VMAs for the wildest costume. Really, I just want to see you take on some of the more OTT outfits: Lil Nas in his amazing black hula-hoop fringe situation (which, admittedly, might be hard to pull together), Lizzo draped in all navy and tons of layers, or T. Swift dripping in diamonds. Do it for me.
Euphoria season 2
In the somehow even more intense season 2, there were *a lot* of can't-miss outfits. You're really spoiled for choice. It's hard to beat Cassie, though, especially the montage of her cycling through looks to try and get Nate's attention (and, never forget her "Oklahoma" outfit!).
The Spider-Man: No Way Home Meme
You will need two friends, three slightly different Spider-Man costumes, and the ability to stand and point. Voila: You have accomplished a recreation of the meme that broke the internet. Also, kind of spoilers for the movie, but it was all over Twitter. Alternative: Go as Spider-Man and MJ.
Top Gun: Maverick
Everyone on Earth is gonna dress to this theme, so throw a curveball and dress as Penny, owner of the local bar/Maverick's love interest/possessor of several very expensive-looking sweaters. Actually, her whole wardrobe is enviable, so take your pick.
The Blonde Brunette Redhead TikTok
"My money don't jiggle jiggle..." Think of this as a performance art piece because you'll need to memorize all the dance moves to the "rap" and then bounce around to them. Alternatively, you can recreate any of the other viral TikToks using the lyrics (or Louis Theroux's original performance). Here's a dance tutorial if you need it! Amazing group costume, part 50.
Lea Michele in Funny Girl
Lots has already been said about Lea and the circumstances of her joining the cast, but the performance and the glorious costuming on set is *chefs kiss* for dressing up. Again, take your pick, but that iconic red fringe dress suit will make you immediately recognizable.
Heartstopper
If you loved this movie (and you should!), it doesn't get much easier than putting on a British school uniform and/or rugby uniform and then pretending to be an in-love teen again. Honestly, you could also go as the whole friend group!
Abbott Elementary
Again, this is as much a recommended TV- and movie-watch list as it is a list of pop culture costumes you could use for Halloween: Abbott Elementary is awesome. Also, dressing up like a very stressed, very cute teacher—literally any of Janine's outfits on this show—would be impossibly easy.
Sebastian Stan at the Met Gala
Do you have head-to-toe hot pink? (Don't answer that; of course you do.) Do you have cool shades? (Obvi.) Do you want to strut around as cool guy Sebastian? (YES.) A bunch of celebrities wore the epic Valentino pink collection, all of which could serve as costume inspo for you, but IMO, this was the best.
Hocus Pocus 2
The great news here is you could either go as the ~original~ characters from the (mildly terrifying) first film or the updated sequel! This clip would help you get started: A couple of new teens, plus some very out-of-place witches trying to speak Gen Z. Iconic.
Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson
Uh, so granted, this couple is no longer together. However!! They gave us enough OTT red carpet moments to steal for a couple's costume. Check out their timeline to revisit some of their important moments. Pete's look from the Met Gala—suit plus sunglasses—would be easy enough. I realize you're prob not gonna get a dress that even ~remotely~ looks like a Marilyn Monroe original, so just buy yourself a beige sparkly you can rewear at a wedding.
Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly
Speaking of easily recognizable, very dramatic couples! MGK and Megan Kelly are doing the most, all the time. If you look at their timeline, you can choose any one of their couple outfits—like their engagement photos, for example—but I am dying for someone to do Megan's bubble gum pink pantsuit and MGK's wildly long nail situation.
Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker
Rounding out our iconic couples of 2022 is Kravis, who basically set the internet aflame when we learned about their coupling. Travis is probably harder, generally (you need a lot of fake or drawn-on tattoos), but you could always do Kourtney with a tight black turtleneck, sunglasses, and pleather pants instead of a more elaborate outfit. Or, if you wanna go full Met Gala, you might need to deconstruct some black pants and sew them on a white mini (lol, do it).
Turning Red
Am I saying you should try to go as a big red bear for Halloween?? Kind of! But if you have buddies, you can also go as the four friends—each with their own distinctive, easy-to-replicate style—and then enjoy having people guess what your costume is.
Wednesday Addams (2.0)
The rebooted character (played by the incredible Jenna Ortega) channels Christina Ricci's iconic look but has a bit of an update. It could not be easier to replicate: Black dress or sweater, black wig—bonus points if you have the same hairstyle—and a sullen expression required.
Harry Styles
Like Timothee, Harry has basically been on fire with outfits you could steal. You could go as him from Better Homes and Gardens, or him with Shania Twain, or him in an interview about Don't Worry Darling (lol), or him as a dashing husband IN Don't Worry Darling. As far as 2022's concerned, he's it, so take your pick.
The Super Bowl Halftime Show
Now that we have Rihanna to look forward to (how soon until February again??) let's go alll the way back to February and remind ourselves—oh yea, last year was also pretty amazing too. From Dr. Dre to Eminem, from 50 Cent to Mary J. Blige, you've got a bunch of iconic sets and outfits to choose from.
Bennifer (again)
The couple made our list of 2021 costumes, obv, but since the duo up and got married(!), we have new couple outfits and pop culture moments you could absolutely do with your partner (she wore THREE different dresses). Since it'd be pricey to buy an ~actual~ wedding dress, maybe opt for something a bit cheaper. Bonus points if "Ben" is holding a coffee from Dunkin' Donuts while in a suit.
Margot Robbie's Barbie (plus Ken!)
Hi, neon! The photos that inspired a whole Barbiecore trend this summer show Barbie with a twist—dressed up in some of her signature looks, but with that Margot Robbie edge. She and Ryan Gosling are technically in rollerblades for this look, but...maybe skip on those if you're actually headed out for the evening.
Season 2 of Bridgerton
The tantric second season has our old faves, of course, with some new faces: Snarky queen Kate Sharma forever, that is all! Simple Regency-era dresses aren't as tough as, like, the wig that the queen wears (you'd have to put a whole cat on your head). If you're gonna DIY it, grab a shift satin dress, a ribbon to make it an empire waist, a bunch of bobby pins to put your hair in an updo, and some gloves if you wanna make it fancy. Voila.
X
The "horror film about several p0rn stars making a movie" is...an absolute delight (go watch!) and also has some pretty awesome costumes. It would take work to go as one of the creepy old people, but it would be way easier to go as Mia Goth or Brittany Snow as the (super-stylish, very cool) adult actors. Tell me you don't want to replicate Maxine's iconic blue eyeshadow and shortalls! Alternative: Go as the buttoned-up, murderous Pearl from the prequel.
Grease
People have been dressing up as Sandy for...literally decades? But in honor of the late, great Olivia Newton-John, let's all go as her signature role. An army of Sandies, walking hand in hand, singing the most iconic songs! (Alternative: Marilyn Monroe, if you're more into a bombshell vibe.)
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