Halloween costumes act as a way for people to dress up, play pretend, and express themselves and their interests. Style choices made by celebrities, characters in media, and trending aesthetics and styles constantly influence what people decide to be for Halloween. Every year, there are newer, more creative costumes trending. Iāve seen quite a few new trends floating around the internet that I think weāll be seeing this Halloween season. In 2025, I predict that costume trends will mainly surround celebrities, television and movies, early 2000s aesthetics, childhood nostalgia, and popular products.Ā
Celebrities
In 2025, there have been multiple viral celebrity advertisements and moments. Many celebrities have distinctive styles when performing that I can see taking over Halloween this year. Signature looks such as Sabrina Carpenterās bedazzled bodysuits from the Short āN Sweet tour, Chappell Roanās drag inspired looks, and the bold and glittery style Kesha rocked on her latest tour could all serve as big inspiration for popular Halloween costumes. Advertisements this year have gained significant attraction as well, such as Katseyeās GAP commercial. Katseyeās all-denim look blew up across several social media platforms. The look is still popular and is being replicated weeks later, making it both a relevant and fun Halloween costume.
Early 2000s
In recent years, trends and styles from the 2000s have been resurging. Styles called Y2K and McBling have been super popular amongst Gen-Z, and have been prevalent in Halloween costumes as well. Y2K isnāt only inspiring Gen-Z, the high demand for Halloween costumes fitting this aesthetic is bringing back popular 2000s brands as well. This season, Iāve frequently seen the brand Leg Avenue, a lingerie and costume retailer whose Halloween costumes gained popularity in the 2000s. In particular, Iāve seen their ladybug and bee costumes make a huge comeback. This resurgence has brought a lot of new traction to Leg Avenue, which announced itād be re-releasing the ladybug costumes, making them more accessible to new consumers. I can see this becoming an easy āduo costume.ā Following in those footsteps, I think we will also see some butterfly costumes emerge, as they fit in with this newly popular ābugā category.Ā
TV and Movies
Many new shows and movies come out every year, creating a market for fresh Halloween costumes. Since last Halloween, multiple blockbuster movies grossing more than 300 million dollars have been released, each of these having fan-favorite characters. Elphaba and Glinda from the Wicked movie last November could be a huge duo costume. Main characters from movies such as Sinners, How to Train Your Dragon, A Minecraft Movie, and Thunderbolts would also make for identifiable and creative costumes that could be popular as well.Ā
Childhood Nostalgia
One new trend that Iāve noticed this year is people being inspired by characters from children’s books and movies. Itās a fun idea and a creative way for people to embrace their nostalgia and relive memories from their childhood. Iāve seen characters such as āFancy Nancy,ā āPete the Cat,ā āPaddington Bear,ā and many more being added to āCostume Inspoā videos on TikTok. A TikTok by creator Jaqueline Isabella shows some examples of this, featuring ideas like “The Princess and the Peaā and āIf You Give a Mouse a Cookie.ā New videos similar to this are popping up daily, giving us a wide range of costumes to choose from.Ā
Popular Products
I feel as though I canāt make an article about Halloween Costume trends without addressing the elephant in the room: the massive popularity of blind box toys. By June 2025, Pop Mart, a Chinese company known for selling popular blind box toys such as Labubu and Peach Riot, had already tripled its earnings from 2024 due to the massive popularity these trinkets suddenly received. Labubus and other blind boxes, such as Sonny Angles and Smiskis, have gained so much popularity this year that I would be surprised if I donāt see costumes of them.Ā
While I see these categories being both popular and in demand this year for consumers and businesses alike, I think itās important to remember responsible consumption habits as well. I predict (and hope) that sustainability efforts, such as DIYs and thrifted costumes, will also be popular.
If you havenāt bought a costume yet, and youāre participating in dressing up, I urge you to break down your costume ideas and see how you can use what you already own, or how you can shop second-hand to create a unique Halloween costume for 2025. Just because we are constantly being advertised to and influenced, doesnāt mean we canāt make efforts to keep our participation in consumerist holidays a little more environmentally friendly.Ā