15 Most Embarrassing, Overdone Costumes To Expect This Year
October is well underway, fall is in the air, and there's one thing on everyone's minds - Halloween costumes. When you're a kid, finding a costume is kind of simple - you just pick whatever character or animal you're obsessed with at the moment and have your parent find a costume for you. When you're an adult, things get trickier. On the one hand, you want a costume that's flattering and shows off that physique you work so hard for. On the other hand, you don't want to be the scantily dressed person at a party where everyone else has opted to be a bit more conservative. Plus, you may want to find something kind of cheeky that shows off your sense of humour with a topical costume. So, it gets a little complicated.
Despite the variety of options out there, each Halloween there are a handful of costumes that you'll see over and over again, inspired by some of the events that year that were on everyone's radar. Now, no one is saying you can't pick a topical costume - you just need to be aware that you'll probably be one of twenty of whatever the character or item is, so you'd better be confident enough to get stuck in a 'who wore it best' situation.
15 Harley Quinn
If you're wondering why Harley Quinn is a more popular costume than pretty much any movie character this year, just look to some wisdom from Regina George as an explanation: Halloween is the only time of year when a woman can dress as slutty as she wants and no one can say anything. Sure, Harley Quinn is a cool-looking character, with the pig tails and colourful make-up and little shorts, and her sassy attitude is awesome, but let's be honest - most women rocking HQ will be doing so in order to show off all the hours they've spent at the gym toning their body, not their knowledge of Suicide Squad. While the comic style Harley Quinn with the silly hat isn't exactly the sexiest costume, a Harley Quinn modelled after Margot Robbie's portrayal in the movie is the perfect solution for girls who want to look sexy this Halloween season.
14 Beyoncé from Lemonade
Look, ladies, we get it - Beyoncé is a queen amongst mere mortals. Beyoncé is life. And for many, many women out there, she will be inspiration for their Halloween costume this year. When Bey dropped her latest visual album, Lemonade, there were countless iconic outfits, but there's one in particular that will probably be popular come Halloween because of how easy it is to pull off. Step one - find a yellow dress. Step two - find a baseball bat. Step three - channel your inner Beyoncé and strut into that Halloween party like you own the place, because Beyoncé sure doesn't show up like a shrinking violet. The average woman might not have Queen Bey's voice, she might not have a rapper mogul husband, she might not be able to ignite the entire freaking world with the surprise release of an album, but for one night, on Halloween, she can channel Beyoncé from Lemonade.
13 Becky with the Good Hair
Yes, another Beyoncé-related costume, but honestly, are you surprised? Lemonade was one of the biggest things to hit the entertainment industry this year, and every girl wants to pay tribute to Queen Bey. This costume is for the cheeky ladies, the ones who might not want to channel Bey but still want to get in on the Lemonade-themed costumes - we're talking Becky with the Good Hair. This costume is basically the easiest thing in the world to do. Sure, you could dress up as one of the suspected Beckys, like Rachel Roy or Rita Ora, or you could just make sure your hair is on point, rock a name tag, and suddenly you're there. There's only one risk - because Lemonade was so big, you might not be the only Becky at the party, and then you've got to battle it out for who truly has the best hair (and hope that no Queen Bey's at the party are channeling Beyoncé so much that they come after you.
12 Khaleesi
This isn't the first year that Daenerys Targaryen from Game Of Thrones - aka Khaleesi - is one of the most popular Halloween costumes for women, which is another reason we're so tired of it. We get it - she's the mother of dragons, a fantastic, strong, powerful female character. Plus, she gives you the chance to see for one night (hopefully via wig, unless you're super dedicated) what it would be like to have long, platinum blonde hair. You get to wear a killer outfit, recite some of her most iconic quotes, and basically feel like a powerful badass for the night. However, if you're going anywhere where you'll be seeing other people, just realize that you'll probably be one of about twenty women dressed as Khaleesi, so you won't end up feeling like you could be in charge of an army - you'll feel like you might be in a weird Khaleesi army. Plus that long blonde wig probably gets pretty itchy as the night goes on, let's be honest.
11 Donald Trump
Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months, chances are you've heard all about Donald Trump's insane antics and comments. He's constantly in the news, which means he's the perfect answer for individuals looking for a topical costume with a dash of politics and a dash of crazy. It's not hard to create a Trump costume - you just need to find a wig to replicate his trademark hair, and then dig out a business suit from your closet. There's only one problem with this one - if you stay in character and start reciting Trump quotes throughout the night, there's a pretty good chance that you might end up getting punched at some point. And, if you're looking for an insane couple's costume or a duo costume with your BFF, you can really take things political and go as Trump and Hillary - bonus points for actually staying in character throughout the night and debating.
10 Pokémon Trainer
While the game's popularity has faded a bit in the last month or two, for a while, 2016 was without question the year of Pokémon Go. Countless people around the world downloaded the game and traversed their entire city in search of those elusive creatures - and some fans became so devoted that they travelled far and wide trying to complete their mission. So, it should come as no surprise that you'll probably find a few Pokémon Go trainers kicking around on Halloween this year. Misty and Ash, the trainers from the cartoon Pokémon, have been somewhat popular costumes for ages, but this year there's going to be a ton of trainers at every party, pokeball in hand, maybe with a creature or two surrounding them if they can convince a friend to dress as Pikachu. Just hope that they don't get too drunk and end up throwing their pokeballs around like real life is the game - that wouldn't end well.
9 Snapchat filters
It might seem like they've been around forever given how often most people use them, but Snapchat's crazy filters have actually only been on the market for a little over a year. Everyone uses them on a regular basis because who doesn't want to cheer themselves up with a flower crown and insta-makeup when they're feeling a little less than glam, or to cheer their friend up with a puppy dog selfie? They're a lot of fun. Every Snapchat devotee regularly checks for new filters and incorporates them into their Snapchats on the regular, but there are a few standard filters that have been used over and over again - and those are the ones iconic enough to inspire a Halloween costume. So, this year for Halloween, you're going to see a ton of puppy dog faces, deer, and flower crown Snapchat filter costumes - what better costume for awesome party selfies than a built in filter?
8 Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters hasn't been on anyone's mind for years, but thanks to the recent female-powered reboot, this year there will be tons of Ghostbusters-inspired costumes out there. Part of the reason this costume is so popular is because of how versatile it is - you could be a solo Ghostbuster, or you could round up your girl squad and go as the full team. Plus, let's be honest, it's pretty easy - Ghostbusting-machine aside, you really just need some khaki clothes and that iconic little no Ghosts patch. Again, though, the popularity of this costume means that it's going to be so, so overdone at whatever party you choose to attend. Not to mention that, unless you do a spin on it and embarrass yourself trying to do a 'sexy Ghostbuster' costume, those baggy khaki suits are not exactly flattering. Definitely go see the movie if you haven't and support the hilarious female comedians in the new reboot - but maybe pick something else for your Halloween costume.
7 Stranger Things gang
This year, one of the biggest Netflix hits to captivate audiences is Stranger Things, the spooky series filled with 80s vibes. Due to its popularity, there's bound to be a ton of Stranger Things inspired costumes for Halloween this year, but there are a lot of ways it could go wrong. First of all, the majority of the characters simply have 80s inspired wardrobes, so unless you decide to do it as a group costume with a few friends, people might not even know who you are at first. The one way to truly ensure you're recognized solo is to dress as the version of Eleven with her head shaved, an Eggo box tucked under your arm, but let's be serious - there's not a lot of people willing to commit to their costume so much that they shave their locks off. Plus, do you really want to be the twelfth Eleven walking into a party?
6 Beyoncé in Formation
2016 was without question the year of Beyoncé, and if you're just not feeling the sassy yellow Lemonade costume, this is a perfect alternative for the ladies who like to rock darker shades. Step one - find some kind of a sexy, longer black dress. Step two - find a great black hat. Step three - pull your hair into two long, long braids and layer on every piece of silver jewellery you own. Step four - master the iconic head bob that Bey does in the “Formation” video. Step five - realize that, no matter how much work you put into the costume, you still look a little like a weird witch rather than Beyoncé. Somehow, when she does it, she just looks unbelievably fierce and stuns everyone. When the average person tries to rock the same outfit, it just doesn't give quite the same vibe, which countless women will figure out for Halloween 2016.
5 Hillary Clinton
Okay, this kind of goes without saying, but the US Presidential Race has been the source of a ton of drama this year, so there will probably be just as many Hillary Clinton's on Halloween as there will be Donald Trumps. If you just really, really want to rock a pant suit and #lean in like Sheryl Sandberg taught you, then this might be the perfect costume. However, just realize that there will be tons of ladies out there dressed like Hillary in an attempt to get a topical costume, so you'll have to commit to being part of a Clinton squad rather than being a solo lady boss. And while it's fun to have a costume that's topical, let's be serious - politicians don't usually have the most glamorous wardrobes, so rocking Clinton's look likely won't have you looking like the chicest girl at the party, if that's something you're looking for in your Halloween costume.
4 Harambe
If the name Harambe doesn't ring any bells for you, chances are you've been ignoring news stories for the past couple months. Back in spring of 2016, Harambe became a trending name world wide after a gorilla by the name of Harambe was killed because a three year old child climbed into his enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo. In order to protect the child, the choice was made to kill Harambe, and the public's opinion on the issue was fairly mixed. Regardless of which side you're on in the whole Harambe debate, there's no question that there will be a lot more gorillas out this Halloween than there were last year. Let's be honest, though - a gorilla suit is probably one of the least flattering Halloween costumes you could pick, and it's probably bound to get really sweaty and itchy under all that black polyester and fur really, really quickly.
3 Starbucks Rainbow Drinks
This summer, social media was absolutely packed with people posting shots of their rainbow drinks from Starbucks. In case you missed the trend, they're basically iced drinks combining some of Starbucks' teas with a few flavourings and alternative milks in order to create concoctions that were very vibrant colours. It wasn't about the taste - it was just about finding a beverage that was extremely photogenic to share on social media. This Halloween, you better believe that women will be digging out dresses in pink, purple, blue, green and yellow shades, sticking a Starbucks logo on themselves somewhere, and creating a head piece designed to look like a straw to transform themselves into the drink they were loving all summer. It's bad enough that you posted every shade of drink to your Instagram account - don't show up as a pepto bismol pink drink for Halloween too. It's not a particularly cute look.
2 The Orange Is The New Black Crew
Look, we get it - Orange Is The New Black is amazing. A few months back, when the latest season dropped, people around the world binge-watched it and went absolutely bananas over the crazy death of Poussey. So, even though you probably saw countless Litchfield prisoners in Halloweens past, Orange Is The New Black is going to be back this year, so prepare for a lot of Pipers, Alexes, Pousseys and more. On the plus side, this costume is basically the equivalent of wearing pajamas around, so the comfort factor is definitely great. However, OITNB costumes have been around for so long now that it's just a little bit overdone. If you're going to opt for something from the pop culture world, get a costume that will at least be somewhat unique at whatever party you decide to go to - otherwise you'll end up looking like you're just one of a number of prisoners in some strange real-life escape scene.
1 Jennifer Aniston
In case you haven't heard, Brangelina is a thing of the past - Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have decided to part ways and end their Hollywood romance. After news of the split was released, people around the world shared Jennifer Aniston memes and clips, basically suggesting that the A-List babe was just laughing at how things turned out for her former hubby. While Jennifer Aniston herself has basically said over and over again over the years that she really doesn't want to be involved in their story whatsoever, there's no doubt that, given how recent the split is, there will be tons of girls going as Jennifer Aniston for Halloween this year. Back when Friends was on the air, there were probably a lot of Rachels out there, but basically any version of Jen will be popular this year. Again, this is kind of a Beyoncé situation - sure, it's simple enough to pull off a flawless Rachel Green outfit, or whichever Jen character you love, but will you ever pull it off quite as well as Aniston herself? Probably not.