With Halloween less than two weeks away, expect to see Addams family members, Barbie, and Five Nights at Freddy’s characters walking Ottawa streets this year.
“This year, Wednesday Addams and Barbie are the biggest,” said Steph Macmillan, the assistant manager of Spirit Halloween on Bank Street. Here’s what’s trending:
Barbie
The Barbie movie, a box office success earning over $1.428 billion worldwide, has made Barbie costumes popular this year. After the movie’s release, Influencers started asking their followers to collectively dress up as different versions of Barbie this Halloween — even coining the phrase “Barbieween.”
“I decided to be Barbie for Halloween simply because it’s trending and I wanted to do my own take,” said Vaishnavi Raj, a student at University of Ottawa.
Raj said she was especially excited to dress up as Barbie because she has brown skin and dark hair, which differs from the traditional Barbie doll.
“I’m excited to see other people’s takes on Barbie too, to see how they perceive her,” she added.
The Addams Family
“I think Wednesday and the Addams Family [are] going to be really popular this year because of the new Netflix series,” said Taylor Davis, an Algonquin Collage student.
Wednesday, the Netflix Addams Family reboot, had a billion hours’ worth of views within its first three weeks of release.
After the show’s debut, social media feeds were flooded by fans doing Wednesday Addams cosplay or reviewing the new series.
“I’ll probably dress up as Wednesday when going out with friends,” Davis said.
Spirit Halloween on Bank Street has expanded its Addams Family costume range to include unofficial dresses that resemble Wednesday’s outfit to meet the increasingly high demand for the costume in Ottawa.
Five Nights at Freddy’s
“Five Nights at Freddy’s [costumes] have been very popular with kids as well,” said Macmillan.
Five Nights at Freddy’s is a popular horror video game known for its heart-pounding jump-scares.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s has a movie set to come out this month, so I’m pretty sure that’s why it’s a popular costume choice,” she added.
The Five Nights at Freddy’s horror adaptation will be released on Oct. 27, just a few days before Halloween.
The Classics
Despite the allure of the latest trends, families are also embracing other classics.
“I’ve played the Mario games my whole life, and I’ve always wanted to do a family costume with the characters,” said Carly Sadaka, a mom of two young boys living in Sandy Hill.
This Halloween, the Sadaka family is dressing up as Mario, Luigi, Yoshi and Princess Peach.
“All the cousins are going trick-or-treating together and there will be a few Marios in the crowd,” she added.
