10 cringey Halloween costumes no one should be wearing in 2024
Halloween gives you the opportunity to sport all kinds of fun costumes. However, with that creative freedom also comes the risk of Halloween flops. We’ve all seen them. The costumes that make you double-take. The ones that elicit eye rolls. And, of course, the stand-out failures that leave you wondering why.
It’s 2024. Not wearing offensive costumes should be a no-brainer. So, instead of reminding people not to do blackface or dress as racial stereotypes (check out Goodhouse Keeping’s offensive costume guide for reference), let’s spotlight those that are just cringe.
From the overrated to the crude, here are the ten worst Halloween costumes of 2024.
10. ’90s Costumes
Okay, so ’90s costumes aren’t inherently cringey unless you happen to walk by a group of millennials. Seeing ’90s outfits littering the decade sections of Spirit Halloweens just hurts. Whether it’s a pop princess look or Nirvana-inspired grunge, it all feels a bit too soon. Right? Right? Come on, please don’t hurt us millennials anymore.
9. Harley Quinn
There’s no denying Harley Quinn is a DC legend with quite the character arc across comics, TV, and film. However, there’s also no denying that the annual dump of Harley Quinn costumes is A LOT. 2016’s Suicide Squad ignited the trend, while the Harley Quinn series kept it alive. Joker: Folie à Deux may have flopped, but there’s already a new Harley costume. Here’s hoping we don’t see much of it.
8. Inflatable Dinosaur
We’ve been here. Done that. Maybe the inflatable dinosaur thing was funny when it first came out in 2015 (remember those videos of parents picking up their kids from school dressed as a goofy-looking T-Rex?), but these same costumes still litter trick-or-treating sessions and social media everywhere. Sorry, it’s getting old now. Prehistoric levels of old.
7. Trashy Couple
Couples costumes can be fun, clever, and downright funny. This trash and recycling bin costume is trying to be all three but still manages to miss the mark. Plus, what are you trying to convey? You and your partner are trashy. Is that really how you want to present yourself? Dressing up as peanut butter and jelly is even better than that.
6. Sexy Priest Costume
This sexy priest costume isn’t cringe as much as it is hilarious. Whether you wrestle with the morality of dressing as a religious figure or not, we can probably all agree that there’s something comical about a deep v-neck cassock cut off at the shoulders to reveal bulging biceps. It looks wrong. It feels wrong. And if you disagree, you’re probably a fan of the “hot priest” trope. (Yeah, it’s a thing.)
5. Poop Costumes
You might think it’s clever to dress as “Hot Shit” or “Holy Shit,” but it’s not. Of all the many characters and things you could be for Halloween, you decided to dress as poop? Really, that’s all that needs to be said about this one.
4. Adult Peeley Costume
Cringe might be too delicate a word for this adult Peeley costume. Yes, Fortnite is still one of the top battle royals around. And yes, adults play it. However, that doesn’t give anyone the right to stalk around as a giant banana. It’s serving creepy, not funny.
3. Condom
The condom costume isn’t anything new, yet it remains as cringey as ever. It’s 2024. We’re all about educating and promoting safe sex, but this isn’t that. No, this feels more like a crude cry for attention… or maybe help.
2. Hawk Tuah Jumpsuit
The “Hawek Tuah Girl” made us all laugh after her street interview with Tim & Dee TV went viral. You could hardly scroll through TikTok without seeing a meme using her blunt advice, “You gotta give it that ‘hawk tuah.’ Spit on that thang.” Did we need to commemorate Hawek Tuah Girl’s internet fame with some bizarre mechanic jumpsuit making a joke about lubrication? Absolutely not.
1. Tape Measurer Costume
The cringe crown goes to the tape measurer costume. Not only are inflatable costumes getting old, but so aren’t the not-so-clever suggestive jokes about men’s… well, you know. The real pièce de résistance are the words “Manly” and “10′”” printed on the side. If that’s how you plan on attracting a partner, you might want to reconsider.
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