These viral moments from 2026 could be your Halloween costume

INTERNET CULTURE
Halloween Costumes

These viral moments from 2026 could be your Halloween costume

Julia GomezUSA TODAY
Oct. 1, 2026, 6:05 a.m. ET

Halloween lovers have plenty of 2026 viral moments and characters to dress up as on Oct. 31, and while some might be a bit challenging, others can be created with a few craft supplies and some DIY spirit.

You can thrift, sew or throw together costumes inspired by Jimothy the raccoon, AI Fruit Love Island, diarrhea-inducing lettuce or Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl grass. Others might look to the silver screen for inspo and dress as characters from 2026 blockbusters like “Backrooms” or Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey.”

More costumes we might see include tributes to the late Dolly Parton and Tim Curry and celebrity couples like Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce. Others may lean into nostalgia – a common theme this year seen everywhere from social media feeds to throwback menus at restaurants.

Here are some costume ideas for Halloween 2026, inspired by internet trends and pop culture.

Moments and trends in 2026 that could inspire costumes

Don’t be surprised if you see someone walking around your Halloween party dressed as a pineapple or a watermelon. Over the summer, many were glued to their screens as they watched heartbreak and drama unfold on Peacock’s dating show, “Love Island.” But what happens when you add AI Fruit? “Fruit Love Island” went viral throughout 2026.

Another costume-inspiring viral moment comes from February, when videos taken after Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Performance showed performers dressed as grass walking off the field.

These other major news stories from 2026 might also prompt Halloween themes or costumes.

• New York Knicks win the NBA championship
• Daredevil couple climbs to the top of the Empire State Building
• Lettuce linked to outbreak of explosive diarrhea

Honoring Dolly Parton and Tim Curry

The deaths of Dolly Parton and Tim Curry, who both died on the same day, shocked the world, and fans may want to use Halloween to honor them.

Parton’s fans have no limit on the Dolly-inspired costumes they can create to honor the musician, actor and philanthropist’s glamorous looks and voluminous blonde hair. To pull off a Parton-inspired look, you’ll need a big head of blonde hair (if you’re not naturally blonde, don’t worry, Parton said she wasn’t either), tight-fitting pants and a top or a dress, and anything sparkly or covered in rhinestones.

Fans may also want to dress up as characters played by Curry, who starred in numerous memorable roles throughout his career, including the iconic Dr. Frank-N-Furter from the 1975 classic “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Other Curry characters that might be walking around on Halloween night include:

• Pennywise from the 1990 movie “IT,” based on Stephen King’s novel
• Nigel Thornberry from the Nickelodeon cartoon “The Wild Thornberrys”
• Long John Silver from “Muppet Treasure Island”

Celebrity-inspired costumes

Celebrity-inspired costumes are another option, especially for some couples, like Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, who were married in July 2026, or Zendaya and Tom Holland, who held a secret wedding, which Holland seemingly confirmed in a profile Esquire published on June 16.

Musician Sabrina Carpenter could also inspire costumes after looks from her 2025 Short n’ Sweet Tour or 2026 Coachella performance went viral. Bad Bunny, Oliou can replicate with clothes from your closet

Viral animals you could see trick-or-treating

Having access to the news 24/7 can be exhausting, so when an adorable animal goes viral, it can feel like a break from hearing about things going wrong in the world.

“I think that’s probably why when a cute animal comes along, everybody is just like, ‘oh, thank God. we need something cute and lovable right now,'” Kendall Bailey, a cosplayer who recently went viral after dressing as Jimothy during DragonCon in Georgia, told USA TODAY. “Because everything else is so depressing.”

Jimothy, a raccoon with a rare defect known as short spine syndrome, went viral over the summer. The raccoon looks a bit different from other members of his species because his spine is much shorter than the typical raccoon’s. But his unusual look made him famous and inspired people to create plushies, paintings, drawings and more of the raccoon. So he’s sure to inspire a few fans to make costumes, too.

Bailey recommends that those who want to dress up like Jimothy choose practical options, especially if they’re going to wear the costume all night.

“Be comfortable, don’t overheat,” said Bailey.

Another animal we might see a lot this Halloween is Punch the Monkey, the baby monkey who went viral after his mother abandoned him and he was seen snuggling with a plush orangutan toy.

It could be an “easy minimalist costume,”

“You could be cute if you went to IKEA and got the stuffed doll,” Bailey said. “So you have the actual stuffed doll that Punch had and just get some little monkey ears and a tail.”

It could even be a cute couples costume, with one person dressed like Punch while another dresses like his toy Orangutan, Bailey stated.

Movies and TV shows always inspire Halloween looks

Several blockbuster movies have hit the silver screen this year, but one character stands out and is even seen roaming around Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights in Los Angeles: Nikki from the film “Obsession.”

We may also see characters from the following movies:

We might also see characters from these TV shows:

2026 brings on the nostalgia and DIY

At the beginning of the year, the “2026 is the new 2016” trend took over, and people were posting photos of themselves from a decade ago, showing off Snapchat filters, pencil skirts and all the 2016 essentials. Nostalgia has been a running theme throughout the year, and Halloween won’t be any different.

People online are seeing a resurgence of Y2K styles. Searches for “ladybug costume,” a retro deadstock costume that includes a red bodysuit with black polka dots and a back tutu designed to look like a ladybug, increased in September on TikTok, according to a newsletter from the social media platform. Searches for “Beanie Babies Costume” also increased.

More people may also go thrifting or opt for a costume they made themselves instead of buying a new outfit as budgets tighten and prices rise.

Contributing: Greta Cross, Saman Shafiq; USA TODAY

Julia Gomez is a Trending reporter for USA TODAY and covers space phenomena, scientific studies and natural disasters. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com