Halloween [1] is fast approaching, and fortunately, the past year has been a great one for movies, TV, and pop culture on the whole. There's been a huge variety of iconic cultural touchstones in 2023, from "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" to the incredible "Beckham" Netflix documentary, and there are a lot lot of options choose from if you're looking for a timely, relevant, and fun Halloween costume.
Of course, sometimes there's nothing like a classic Halloween costume to get into the spirit of spooky season, and a good old-fashioned witch, ghost, or black cat costume is always a good choice. Other times, you need to opt for a super easy DIY costume [2] if you're feeling like keeping things simple . . . or if you waited until the last minute.
But an ultra-timely and current costume can be a great way to provoke fun reactions from all your friends. Whether you go trick-or-treating as Kendall Roy from "Succession", Bad Bunny and Kendall Jenner, or the cockroach from the Met Gala red carpet, all these costumes will provoke surprise, delight, and probably a few fun discussions about the pop culture event you've chosen to embody. Read on to discover the best pop culture Halloween costumes of 2023.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: David and Victoria Beckham
Now we know this look is technically from the late '90s, but the release of Netflix's "Beckham" documentary [3] has seen nostalgia for the Beckham's grow. There's so many iconic couple outfits [4] to choose from, but turning up to Halloween [5] in this double leather look win you best-dressed.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Barbie and Ken From "Barbie"
"Barbie" [6] is an obvious pick for Halloween [7] this year. The instantly iconic movie has given us plenty of amazing costume options to choose from [8], but Barbie and Ken's cowboy-themed outfits from the "real world" will make for an immediately recognisable, impossibly fun couples' costume.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: J. Robert Oppenheimer From "Oppenheimer"
You might not have to look too far to find what you need to dress as the "father of the atomic bomb," J. Robert Oppenheimer [10], played by Cillian Murphy in Christopher Nolan's biopic. To embody the film's titular physicist, you'll want to obtain Oppenheimer's signature brown fedora as well as a vintage, professorial suit or trench coat. If you want to make an "Oppenheimer" costume into a joint effort, Albert Einstein also makes for a fun and easy choice — just locate a flowing white Einstein-style wig and you're all set.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Prince Harry
The year kicked off with the release of Prince Harry's sensational memoir, "Spare" [11]. Why not get creative and cut out some cardboard to attach around your head? Wear a grey shirt, use wash-in-wash-out red spray for your beard and hair, and simply add the title underneath. Creative and easy!
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Rihanna at the Super Bowl Half Show
Rihanna [12] made history with her performance at the Super Bowl halftime show [13] on 12 Feb., which doubled as a pregnancy reveal for the superstar [14]. To pull off her look, you'll need red cargo pants, red shoes, and a red bomber jacket. Unfortunately, this costume won't guarantee you Rihanna-level charisma.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Taylor Swift's "Reputation" Outfit From Her Eras Tour
Taylor Swift [15]'s unique and beautiful Eras Tour outfits [16] pay tribute to each of her albums, and all of them will make for great costumes. Her "Reputation"-era outfit might be the most immediately recognisable of the bunch, though. For this one, you'll want to get a one-legged, one-armed tight black jumpsuit (or cut off one the leg and arm of an ordinary jumpsuit if you feel like getting a bit crafty), and then buy or make some bedazzled red snakes and layer them across your body.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Maverick From "Top Gun: Maverick"
Put yourself into the centre of the action with a Maverick costume [17]. For this costume, you'll want to acquire some type of green bodysuit, which you can either purchase or throw together with green pants, a green jacket, and some patches. A helmet will also pull things together, and don't forget your shades.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Adonis Creed From "Creed"
You might not have time to acquire Michael B. Jordan-level abs [18] before Halloween [19], but you can still dress up as Adonis Creed. Grab a pair of flag-printed shorts and some white boxing gloves. You'll also probably want a robe if you plan on going out into the autumn chill.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Portia From "The White Lotus"
In a show full of memorable characters, Portia and her outfits on "The White Lotus" [20] season two stood out and made quite a stir while the show was airing. Few of her looks were more memorable — and more throughly maligned — than an ensemble that consisted of a colourful, striped cutout-sleeve sweater, a zebra print-bikini, and white shorts. Grab a champagne glass, try out your best freaked-out expression, and you'll be all set.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Beyoncé's Bee Costume From the "Renaissance" Tour
Beyoncé's "Renaissance" tour has given us tons of memorable looks [21], but perhaps none is more unique than her custom bee costume. Grab a black and yellow jumpsuit, over-the-knee boots, and some kind of antennae-like headpiece to complete the look.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: King Charles
In the year of the King's Coronation [22], pay homage to the occasion by dressing in regal attire. Bag a cape, an orb, and a crown and dress as the monarch for the evening. Thrones optional.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Taylor Swift and Matty Healy
Their relationship might have been brief [23] but the memories they gave us will last . . . past Halloween [24]. With a purple sweater, black miniskirt, and white pumps, dress as Taylor Swift [25] alongside your bestie or other half dressed in a black top, jeans, and brown boots as Matty Healy. You will have entered your 1975 era.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Hailey Bieber and Her Nepo Baby T-Shirt
Hailey Bieber gave us a particularly iconic look this year when she stepped out wearing a T-shirt that announced her status as a nepo baby [26] to the world. Grab some loose jeans and a black belt, and order your own Bieber-inspired nepo baby shirt — or just write out the words on a white tee — and you'll have the perfect casual yet recognisable look for his Halloween [27].
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Ariel From "The Little Mermaid"
Halle Bailey dazzled as Ariel in Disney's "The Little Mermaid" [28] live-action remake, and her look also makes for a perfect Halloween [29] costume. A tight, shimmery green skirt and a purple bikini top are ultimately all you need here — though you could also incorporate as many "mermaidcore" elements [30] as you'd like.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Wednesday and Enid From "Wednesday"
Wednesday and Enid may be polar opposites, but that makes them ideal characters to dress as this Halloween [31]. For Wednesday, you'll want to adopt her signature plaits [32] and an all-black look, whereas for Enid, you'll want to break out the sparkly makeup and nail polish. Their school uniforms make for an easy option — Wednesday wears a black blazer while Enid wears a blue one — but you could get creative and put your own spin on the characters. (Just make sure that Wednesday sticks to black while Enid is wearing anything but.)
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Daisy and Billy From "Daisy Jones & The Six"
Live out your 1970s rock star dreams with a "Daisy Jones & The Six"-inspired look [34]. For Daisy, you'll want to opt for a white lacy crop top and jeans or a flowing, sheer coverup over short shorts and a tight top. A red wig will help tie things together. For Billy, opt for a button-down and black jeans, and don't forget your acoustic guitar.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Sam Smith
It might be a little tricky, but if you could pull off the Sam Smith Brits jumpsuit, then you'll be in the Halloween [35] hall of fame. They wore the inflatable latex number [36] for the 2023 awards show and instantly commanded attention. With some cushions attached and some black bin liners, we're sure it can be done.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: The Antler Queen From "Yellowjackets"
If you want to freak people out a bit this Halloween [37], the mysterious Antler Queen from "Yellowjackets" makes for a genuinely creepy costume. You'll need a mesh veil, a face covering, a white cloak, and of course, that signature antler headpiece.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Kendall Roy From "Succession"
Kendall Roy's time on "Succession" may be over, but Kendall as a concept will definitely live on [38]. For this costume, you'll definitely want to opt for the fanciest-looking suit and dress shoes you can get your hands on, but you can make the look a bit more recognisable by adding Kendall's signature black sunglasses and grey trench coat — and adopting a thoroughly miserable-looking expression.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Lee From "Bones and All"
Timothée Chalamet [39] might be gearing up to star in "Dune 2" [40] and "Wonka", two massive, sure-to-be-blockbusters, but he gives a remarkable performance in A24's muted horror-romance hybrid, "Bones and All". Chalamet plays Lee, a cannibal who tries to avoid eating people — until hunger gets the best of him. Lee's most recognisable look is a long-sleeved, flowing pink shirt over cutoff shorts, and you could also adopt his orange-fringed hairstyle to complete the look.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny
They were first linked in early February, but Bad Bunny and Kendall Jenner are reportedly still going strong [41] — and they've already given us a fair number of fun looks to try, including their post-Met Gala outfits, pictured above. For Bad Bunny, you'll want to grab black sunglasses, a large cross pendant, a brown jacket, brown pants, and tan suede boots. For Jenner, an all-black bathing suit covered by a short, sheer romper or dress will do the trick.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: M3GAN From "M3GAN"
Not all Halloween [42] costumes come complete with a TikTok dance [43], but this one most definitely does. As the titular doll from "M3GAN," you'll need a blonde wig, white tights, ballet flats, and a long-sleeved striped shirt worn under a beige dress. Just don't forget her signature large striped bow, and be sure you have those dance moves down.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Joe From "You"
Despite the fact that his best disguise consists of only a baseball cap, Joe Goldberg continues to evade consequences [44] for his actions on Netflix's "You." As Joe, you may not be able to blend in or avoid scrutiny as well as he can, but fortunately, a Joe costume is quite easy to put together. Just adopt a tweed jacket if you're going for his professor era from season four [45] and grab an old book of some kind, and don't forget his signature cap.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Kylie Jenner at Paris Haute Couture Week
Kylie Jenner's decision to bring out a gigantic lion's head to Schiaparelli's Paris Haute Couture Week show in January [46] was a unique fashion choice, to say the least, but it also makes for a creative Halloween [47] costume. Grab a lion plushie and wear a sleeveless black dress and a high ponytail for this look.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Elvis and Priscilla Presley
Elvis and Priscilla Presley's love story has also been at the centre of not one but two major recent movies — Austin Butler's "Elvis" [50] netted him an Oscar nomination in 2022, and the forthcoming biopic "Priscilla" [51] will share Priscilla's side of the story. The pair are, therefore, a perfect pick for this Halloween [52], and their timeless style just might work for certain occasions year-round.
For Priscilla, you'll definitely want to copy her elevated '60s style hairdo, either on your own or with a black wig. You'll also want to locate a retro short wedding dress or any sort of semi-formal, chic '60s-style dress or outfit you can find in your closet, and whatever you do, don't hold back on the cat eyes. For Elvis, a bedazzled bell-bottom jumpsuit, any kind of flashy, bejeweled suit jacket, or a simple leather jacket over black pants with shades will do, and don't forget to grab some grease and hairspray and copy his coiffed, slicked-back locks.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Ted Lasso
If you're looking for a low-effort Halloween [54] costume, look no further than Jason Sudeikis's Ted Lasso [55]. You'll definitely want to recreate that mustache, ether by buying one or simply drawing one on (though be careful about which markers you use!). His track jacket is also one of his more recognisable pieces, so short of finding an exact replica, you can recreate that by taking a simple dark blue jacket and placing some red stripes over it. You can also opt for a polo shirt or black jacket; a football ball, aviator sunglasses, and whistle will complete the look.
Best Pop Culture Halloween Costumes 2023: Billy the Puppet From the Saw Movies
If you're looking to freak people out this year while also not putting too much work into your costume, Billy the Puppet from the Saw movies [57] is a good balance of scary and simple. You can just grab a hoodie, suit jacket, white gloves, red shoes, and a red bowtie for the costume, and then use some white face paint and lipstick to draw those red circles on your cheeks. You could also be more creative by making your own mask and acquiring a tricycle.