Want to win Gay Halloween? Try these 10 niche pop culture costume ideas

If you’ve even watched the trailer for Wicker, chances are you’re ovulating already. The film comes out on October 30, kicking off Hallo-weekend and presenting the opportunity to be niche yet topical.

Ahead of its release, ob-gyns have been warning audiences against acting on whatever the super-kinky flick awakens within them. This costume embodies the outcome of that forbidden awakening. It’s also incredibly low spend for high reward—all you need is a round wicker basket fastened to your belly and you’re golden.

You can throw on a lush grey wig if you’re so inclined (Alexander Skarsgård certainly was), but the ensemble will thrive even without it. In fact, the rest of the outfit has no barriers to entry—not even a uterus. Wicker can impregnate all.

The modern-day Romeo and Juliet, if you will. Star-crossed lovers finally reunited after Saif Ali Khan spent multiple talk-show appearances calling in his two-year supply of Gowardhan ghee, won on Kaun Banega Crorepati, earlier this month. To be fair, we live in an era of bleak situationships, so it’s hardly surprising if the closest you’ve come to being in love is with an inanimate object.

Dressing up as the honorary Gen Z nawab is pretty low-effort: a blazer, black-rimmed sunglasses, a paintbrush moustache, and a self-deprecating, deadpan sense of humour. Naturally, a jar of Gowardhan ghee is non-negotiable. And if you really want to commit to the bit, respond to every conversation with: “Wow, what? This is it, this is why I came.”

These two just match each other’s freak. And if you happen to have found someone who matches yours (or want to live in the delusion that you have, for the night), this might be the couples costume for you!

The Nathan Fielder ensemble has a few simple key ingredients: a grey sweatshirt, a curious yet morally ambiguous gaze, a little salt and pepper in the hair (or a little stubble if you’re so inclined), and a key prop: his laptop harness. This emotional-support tech object will set you apart and, let’s be honest, set you back by a few thousands, but it wouldn’t be Nathan Fielder if you weren’t committing to the bit.

As for Elizabeth Holmes, I would go for her founder fit: a black turtleneck that harkens back to the Girlboss era, a deep side part made into a bun, some kind of medical product that is of no use at all (a menstrual pain management pill perhaps!) and the biggest blue contacts you can buy—through them, you can see what you want to...and only what you want to.

Pooja Misra isn’t a look everyone can pull off, but an icon begs for rebirth through iconography. In this case, that takes the form of a black maxi dress, ideally with a little pop of 2011 red, and a silicone sweeper in hand. Most importantly, you must enter each room ready to fight, and if you haven’t memorised the iconic dialogue, your costume is disqualified.

The dustbin is needed, but if you don’t feel like dragging one around with you all night (or kicking it from place to place), this translates to a surprisingly gaggy couples costume. The dustbin does not have to fight Pooja for the spotlight—an all-silver ensemble (à la the dustbin from the Bigg Boss house) is a fairly captivating look itself. Although if you do outshine her, a kicking is to be expected.

To illustrate your functionality, you can open your mouth every time someone steps on your foot—this party trick has the potential to be incredibly amusing if using the mechanism to open your mouth for shots. Even more amusing as more shots get consumed.

Are you a bi-girl with a boyfriend? I can feel your dread through the screen. Gay Halloween is the perfect event to remind everyone that you’re bi, regardless of whether they want to hear it! This costume is perfect for this duo, because you can broadcast a distaste for men, and the man through whom you’ll do this gets to do a costume from The Odyssey—a film he, as a man, is contractually obligated to ride or die for. It’s a win-win!

For him, you’ll want a pig nose, pig ears, and whatever ratio of man-to-pig clothing you see fit. It’s all the same at a certain point anyway. And for you, diva, just be the gorgeous witch I know you already are. A loose braid, some bronzer, a rustic, flowing robe of your choosing, and perhaps a little potion in hand.

If you live in Mumbai, Tukaram Mundhe chasing a rat is the perfect enemies-to-lovers couples costume. You hate their guts but keep finding excuses to run into them, before eventually admitting your love. One person plays the FDA Commissioner, in a crisp shirt, trousers, rimless glasses, and a moustache, armed with a clipboard and the unwavering conviction that the rats must go. The other, preferably the shorter half of the pair, plays a scrappy rat just trying to make it in the big city. Wear grey, add some paper ears and a tail, and you’ve got yourself a rat. Together, you’re the 2026 Ratatouille, spending the night in a Tom & Jerry-style chase before calling a drunk truce around 2 am. Love wins. Public sanitation, perhaps, does not.

If you haven’t already seen Adults, run, don’t walk. The show’s fantastic second season has a crucial arc unravel over a menage a trois that grinds to a screeching halt once they discover an unexpected guest. Here’s what you’ll need for this throuple’s costume:

Isa (Amita Rao) all blinged out in her “sex dress” that is any Sindhi boy mom’s dream and nightmare all at once. Paul Baker (Jack Innanen) in his cosy acid night outfit, moustache mandatory, and nails painted in pastel tones with smileys on them like the acid that’s about to kick in. Finally, round out the trifecta with Anton (Owen Thiele) with a cute crop top, a vivacity few can pull off, and most importantly, a stuffed possum wrapped around your shoulder.

You’ll be this year’s Challengers!

This costume is especially for the chronically online trio that finds great pleasure in acting out obscure skits from the internet over and over again. We bet your FYP was flooded with “when Chappell sees a child” memes back in March. TL;DR for the uninitiated: Brazilian footballer Jorginho took to Instagram to defend his stepdaughter after she allegedly got told off by Chappell Roan’s security personnel for smiling at her.

For Chappell: go all out in full pop-star regalia, ideally looking like you have better places to be. Don’t forget Chappell’s iconic red wig.

For the security guard: we want to channel Salman Khan in Bodyguard, with an all-black outfit, black sunglasses, an earpiece, and some strategic padding to look buff.

Finally, for the child: something from your 5th grade wardrobe perhaps, or put your hair in two pigtails and call it a day. Bonus points if you make a Chappell Roan concert sign. Just remember to smile at your own risk.

A costume for the couple that makes absolutely no sense on paper but is somehow perfect in practice. Think Avril Lavigne-core, hyper-femme bi-girl meets her ballet-hating twink boyfriend. The lore? Timothée Chalamet triggered an internet meltdown after suggesting that nobody cares about ballet and opera anymore. When Adéla, an ex-ballerina, was asked about his comments, she came to his defence, saying the whole thing had been blown out of proportion.

For a Timothée costume, bring back the SNL rapper moment with a pink wig, gold chain, white tank top, a face tattoo, and chunky sneakers—so everyone knows your anti-ballet stance. The pink hair will also match your Adéla’s electric-pink wig, who will obviously be dressed in a tutu, leg warmers, and ballet flats.

Bonus points if Timothée spends the entire night explaining why nobody cares about ballet and Adéla defends him while demonstrating a perfect plié.

Our favourite idea for a dramatic friend group. If you and your friends have spent hours scrolling through AI fruit soap operas, abandoning all other responsibilities to watch three separate series at once, this group costume is for you. You could be a cheating banana, a heartbroken strawberry, a suspiciously jacked mango, an abandoned baby kiwi, and so much more. All you need is a monotone, automated voice and Uncanny Valley-like expressions of someone who has never experienced a human emotion.

The costumes themselves are easy enough: dress head to toe as your chosen resident of the produce aisle, maybe throw on a fruit-shaped hat, and bring a prop that hints at the lore—a positive pregnancy test, gold paint dripping down your arms, divorce papers. The possibilities are endless. Pro tip: play ‘Kamin’ by Emin and Jony, the unofficial soundtrack to the AI fruit cinematic universe, on loop everywhere you go. Your friends will either love you or file for divorce.