At left, Halloween decorations in the historic Boulevard Neighborhood of Athens, Ga., on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024. To the right, Maia “Lakota” Sousa of Salem dressed as Lady Deadpool at Terror Con at the Royal Plaza Trade Center, Marlborough, MA.
© Craig S. Semon/Telegram & Gazette Staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images + © Joshua L. Jones
(New York, NY) – Every year there are new Halloween costumes. Many are tied to viral trends, popular movies or TV shows, and potentially political candidates. Others never seem to go out of style, like princesses, pirates, firefighters, cops, vampires, and ghosts.
So here in 2024, what are the big costumes? A look at Google Trends can provide the answer. With the success of Marvel’s Deadpool and Wolverine movie over the summer, both comic book characters are popular choices. The trends look at the most searched costume options, broken down by region. The minions from the “Despicable Me” franchise are holding on to their popularity as well.
Characters tied to Pixar’s “Inside Out” are also doing well it seems. In terms of real life figures, Taylor Swift is a common costume search. So is Sabrina Carpenter, a fellow singer, who is behind the viral hit “Espresso.” The world of sports provides a popular choice — Raygun — the Australian breakdancer who went viral during the Paris Olympics. With the new Beetlejuice sequel, Shrunkenhead Bob is proving highly popular.
Meanwhile, the Halloween costumes tradition is about 175-years old here in the United States. It was brought to the states by Irish immigrants during the potato famine. Costumes and little “tricks” or pranks were associated with the end of October and Halloween. That led to “trick or treating,” in which people would provide passersby with little goodies to avoid being the victim of pranks. For a time, that led to a ban on the practice — given millions of dollars in property damage would result. After World War II, “trick or treating” became commonplace nationwide.
Also, experts note that while it always makes sense to check your kids candy for any broken wrappers — and to avoid kids ingesting too much candy — other hazards are the bigger worry. Those include motorists on road ways during trick or treating, and elaborate costumes that can result in injury.
Wishing you a happy and safe Halloween from 77 WABC!
