Written By | Fashion and Design Desk
From Halle Berry's X-Men premiere dress to Naomi Campbell's 1990 Vogue shoot, this year's celebrity costumes read like a fashion-history syllabus.
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Halloween has long been the one night a year when celebrities are allowed to step out of their own brand. In 2026, many stepped instead into someone else's wardrobe, and the result looks less like a costume party than a curated fashion-history exhibit. Red-carpet moments, magazine covers and music-video outfits were rebuilt almost stitch for stitch, and the references ran from 1984 to this year.
The Red-Carpet Rewind
The most fashion-literate look, according to W Magazine's roundup, came from Zendaya, who dressed as Halle Berry at the 2000 premiere of "X-Men." Styled by Law Roach, the look used an archive Lanvin piece, the one designer W credits by name among the major costumes. It is the kind of detail that rewards viewers who know the original.
Others went to the runway-adjacent past. Olandria recreated Naomi Campbell's 1990 Vogue editorial look. Paris Hilton channeled Britney Spears at the 2001 VMAs, tagging it "#Slivingween," and Winnie Harlow took on Spears's "I'm a Slave 4 U" video outfit. Kendall Jenner became Jane Henderson from "Paris, Texas" (1984) in a platinum bob and hot-pink dress, a reference that prizes cinematic style over celebrity.
Fashion itself became a punchline in a few cases. Lisa Rinna dressed as Kylie Jenner's orange Chrome Hearts look from the "Marty Supreme" premiere, a recent enough reference to qualify as self-aware commentary on how quickly red-carpet looks become cultural shorthand.
Dua Lipa's Five-Minute Gown
Not every look was a costume in the literal sense. Dua Lipa shared photos in a floor-length sheer black gown from Lou de Bétoly's Autumn/Winter 2026 collection, with a lingerie-style bodice and lace panels, plus a black fur coat. theFashionSpot noted smoky eyes and deep brown lipstick. Lipa's own caption was a study in deflation: "When the halloween costume comes together 5 mins before leaving the house."
That line captures a shift. Celebrity Halloween used to be about elaborate transformation. Now a polished, high-fashion outfit with a wink is as valid as a prosthetics-heavy character, and the joke is often the effortlessness.
Aguilera's Circus Party
Christina Aguilera, meanwhile, made her own event of it. Her "Xtinaween" party at her Mulholland Estates home in Los Angeles gave her a stage for a circus-mistress look styled by Chris Horan: a red-and-white corset with balloon sleeves and a plunging neckline, matching micro shorts with shoelace loops and hanging red ribbons, sheer red-and-white stockings, red pointed kitten pumps, and hair tied up in red ribbons with eerie white heart makeup. theFashionSpot nicknamed it "Lady Marmalade." The article did not name designers for the garments.
Pop Culture as Wardrobe
Beyond couture references, W's list shows how widely the net was cast. Alex Consani went as Thumb-Thumb from "Spy Kids," described as an early-aughts deep cut. Kali Uchis became Natalie Portman's pink-haired Alice from "Closer" (2004). Keke Palmer and her son recreated a famous Michael and Janet Jackson photoshoot. Kerry Washington revived Jane Fonda's 1980s fitness-video era. Kim Kardashian chose a look based on her daughter North West's blue-haired style, complete with black grills. Lily Allen went as a Ticketmaster seat map, the year's least glamorous and most relatable costume.
Social media shaped the trend, too. Benito Skinner and Owen Thiele recreated the PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson remix video, while the "Ride" podcast hosts restaged a 2019 talk-show moment with Dakota Johnson. These costumes exist to be photographed and shared, and their appeal depends on the audience recognizing the source in a glance.
Why It Matters for Fashion
Costume dressing is a barometer of what fashion culture finds iconic. The choices skewed toward the 1990s and early 2000s, the same era currently driving vintage and archive resale, runway revivals and nostalgic brand relaunches. When a star builds a costume around a specific designer's archive piece, as Zendaya did with Lanvin, it also works as free storytelling for the house.
It also shows how styling has become a creative credit. Law Roach and Chris Horan are named alongside the wearers, and the costumes demonstrate the stylist's role as researcher and curator, not only shopper.
The Social Layer
Several of the weekend's looks were designed as much for the feed as for the room. Gabbriette and Quenlin Blackwell recreated the ring scene from "Scary Movie 3" as an Instagram short film, and Gabbriette also wore a Dorothy from "The Wizard of Oz" look to a Chrome Hearts party in Los Angeles. Janelle Monáe performed at a Bacardí party in a prosthetics-heavy costume as The Amazing Phishboy. Francesca Scorsese went as a werewolf, adding furry details to a going-out miniskirt for the Cursed Amulet party in Bushwick.
The takeaway is that a costume now has a life across formats: a runway-style photo, a short video, a caption that lands the joke. Looks like Zendaya's and Kendall Jenner's are built to travel across all three, which is a useful lens for anyone watching how celebrity style travels online.
What This Means for You
You do not need a stylist or a designer archive to borrow the idea. Pick a single recognizable reference, whether an editorial, a premiere or a music video, and rebuild its silhouette from pieces you own or can thrift. Dua Lipa's takeaway is worth keeping: a sheer layer, dark lip and a good coat can read as a complete look with five minutes of effort. And if you are planning for next year, remember that the references that landed were specific and well chosen, not generic.
The Bottom Line
Halloween 2026 will not change what ends up on runways, but it offers a snapshot of what the culture remembers and loves. This year, it remembered Halle Berry in 2000, Naomi Campbell in 1990 and a thousand pop-culture moments in between, and it dressed accordingly.
