Most Popular Halloween Costumes Since the 1950s

The 1950s solidified trick-or-treating and dressing up as a mainstream Halloween activity. Halloween parties began to emerge, and cheaper store-bought costumes became more popular, often referencing the pop culture of the time. But if not classics like witches and ghosts, what were these costumes?

The 1950/60s

These decades share many overlapping costume trends. You could see many cowboys walking around due to the popularity of western films, TV and comic book characters like Superman and Howdy Doody were also a top choice. The only difference between these decades: The Beatles! With their rise to fame, they became an iconic group costume in these years.

The 1970s

The 70s made the switch to disco and sci-fi with the popularization and release of Star Wars! Darth Vader and C-3PO became a staple costume, along with the biggest bell-bottoms and sequins. Other classics like skeletons and animals remained popular throughout every decade, and superheroes stayed up there as well.

The 1980s

This is the decade when pop culture started dominating Halloween. Iconic figures like Maddona, Prince, and Hulk Hogan were all top contenders for costume ideas. You could also see many characters like Elvira, the Ghostbusters, and many other horror movie characters walking around during Halloween. However, in this decade, people opted for more homemade costumes.

The 1990s

Superstars and movie characters were most of all the costumes you would see during these years. Brittany Spears, the Spice Girls, NSYNC, along with characters from Pulp Fiction, Clueless, Friends, and even the Power Rangers, were trending for many years. The 90s are a decade you can recognize anywhere.

The 2000s

You could really see anything for Halloween. With everything still being relevant from the 90s, those costumes all still stand here. Newer hot costumes were from Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, and Juno. Figures like Paris Hilton, Mariah Carey, Lara Croft, and the Olsen twins were also the choice for many people these years.

The 2010s & Now

Nowadays, you can pretty much look into any Halloween crowd and see any costume you can think of. There are thousands of movie characters, and music stars, and puns, and inanimate objects that people dress up as every year, and it’s hard to say that this and the last decade are defined by specific costume trends.