If you're going to go for a couples Halloween costume, don't be Daisy and Gatsby, Bonnie and Clyde, or any duo in any Disney or Wes Anderson movies. Instead, double down on something that needs context in order to work, or something you simply might not have the guts to wear alone. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Unless you have a legitimate cultural claim on Dia de Muertos, maybe give the skeleton costumes a rest already. If you want to go scary on Halloween, 2016 is the year to go full clown. And two clowns—quietly talking in a corner at a party, or briskly walking down the street in silence (fine, texting)—are scarier than one.
The Joker and Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad are going to be the most popular Halloween costumes of 2016, which means they’ll be the most obnoxious couples costume of the year. For a timely duo that’s slightly less grating try any two characters from Stranger Things, such as Eleven and Mike Wheeler. (Whoever has a buzz-cut gets to be Eleven.)
Prince and princess costumes of all varieties are pretty obnoxious. Two Princes, on the other hand, is pure purple joy, all night long. And hey, the ingredients are not all that different. Think: ruffled shirt, tight lace-up pants, and a couple of crazy wigs. Bonus: Instead of carrying around a lame-ass sword and shield, you’ll get to hang onto an eclectic guitar all night.
Wes Anderson characters are incredibly costume friendly, we get it, but Elaine and Jerry from Seinfeld had just as many sartorial moments that you can draw from for a Halloween couples costume. Plus, with the ‘90s back in style, the thrift store options should be plentiful.
If someone in your party insists on a “sexy” costume, you’ve got to get a little weird with your choice in order to avoid looking like a couple of basic yo-yos. For something that’s sexy, funny, and creepy, go as Teyana Taylor and Iman Shumpert at the end of Kanye’s Fade video. All you need are flesh-tone bodysuits, Vaseline, lambs, and some sort of cat prosthesis.
