Worst celebrity Halloween costumes of all time

by · Mail Online

Halloween remains a battlefield for out-of-touch stars who risk being canceled over their offensive or tone-deaf costumes.

Recent years have seen seen stars including Kim Kardashian and Julianne Hough be forced to apologize after fans branded their costumes racist.

Meanwhile, other celebrities have been lambasted for simply wearing tasteless outfits.

Regardless of the reasons, stars have racked up plenty of terrible costumes from celebrating Halloween.

Now, DailyMail.com takes a look at some of the worst and most controversial celeb costumes over the years. 

Halloween remains a battlefield for out-of-touch stars who risk being canceled over their offensive or tone-deaf costumes, like Kim Kardashian's 2017 attempt to dress up as Aaliyah
Several stars' costumes have been branded racist, including Chris Brown's 'terrorist' costume from 2012. Now, DailyMail.com takes a look back at some of the worst and most offensive costumes of all time

Kim Kardashian dresses up as the late Aaliyah in 2017

Kim Kardashian courted controversy — seemingly unintentionally — back in 2017 when she tried to transform herself into the late singer Aaliyah.

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The reality star adopted a similar outfit to the one the songstress wore in the music video for her single Try Again, which was released in 2000 as part of the soundtrack to the film Romeo Must Die, which she also acted in.

The tune went on to top the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, but Aaliyah had little time to savor its success, as she died in 2001 in a tragic plane crash.

Although Kim's Aaliyah costume showed off her stellar figure, it outraged fans due to her decision to dress up as a Black woman.

Due to Kim's constant tan, it wasn't clear if she had attempted to darken her skin beyond it's normal shade, but fans were nonetheless outraged at the race-switching costume.

She later addressed the controversy with a mealy-mouthed apology on her website.

'I saw online that some people thought my costume was in poor taste and I am truly sorry if that offended anyone. When I was creating the costume, I wasn’t dressing up as a race or culture but rather as a woman whom I will always admire,' she wrote.

'I play every kind of genre of music in my home and I like for my kids to be exposed to many different artists. For me, it’s always about love and respect,' Kim continued, while pointing out her other family members' costumes.

'I loved that Kourtney [Kardashian] was Michael Jackson for one of her costumes,' she said. 'We don't see color in my home. We were paying homage to people and artists we love and respect — it’s that simple!'

Kim's allegedly color-blind costuming went back even further, as she had previously dressed as another fallen singer, the Mexican American star Selena Quintanilla.

However, that look, which involved a sparkling purple bodysuit, failed to ignite the same kind of public criticism, even though Kim was once again dressing up as a woman of another ethnicity. 

In 2020, Kim posted a roundup of her favorite past Halloween looks and seemingly ignored the past controversy, as she included both her Aaliyah and Selina costumes among her best looks.

Kim adopted a similar outfit to the one Aaliyah wore in her Try Again music video, which was released in 2000 as part of the soundtrack to the film Romeo Must Die, which she also acted in
The costume was accurate to the original look, and Kim didn't appear to darken her skin beyond her usual tan, but fans were outraged that she had dressed up as a Black woman
Kim's allegedly color-blind costuming went back even further, as she had previously dressed as another fallen singer, the Mexican American star Selena Quintanilla, though it didn't attract the same amount of criticism

Chris Brown offends with 'terrorist' costume at Rihanna's 2012 Halloween bash

Chris Brown didn't seem to be worried about offending fans when he rolled up to Rihanna's West Hollywood Halloween party in 2012.

The disgraced hitmaker — who beat the host savagely enough that she had to go to the hospital in an infamous incident three years earlier — was dressed in what might have been a generic Bedouin costume.

However, in addition to the cream-colored robe and gray turban, he added a ridiculously long, thick beard that turned the look into a mockery.

Brown's costume was described as a 'terrorist' look, and he ensured fans would get that impression by carrying a — presumably fake — rifle in a staged photo before the party while wearing crisscrossing ammunition belts across his torso.

He was joined by an entourage in similarly offensive looks who also sported hopefully fake guns aimed at the camera.

Chris was later seen at the party after ditching the cumbersome beard, but the foul impression was already established.

Chris Brown dressed up in comically offensive Bedouin garb with a big fake beard and turned it into a 'terrorist' by carrying a rifle and wearing ammo belts to a 2012 Halloween party thrown by his ex Rihanna, whom he savagely beat three years earlier.

Julianne Hough wears Blackface for Orange Is The New Black Costume

There's been a major effort to educate Halloween partiers about avoiding costumes involving offensive skin darkening to portray a Black or brown person in recent years.

One of the biggest catalysts over the past decade was Julianne Hough's offensive 2013 costume.

The Dancing With The Stars veteran bronzed up her face and wore orange scrubs resembling a prison uniform to dress up as the character Suzanne 'Crazy Eyes' Warren (played by Uzo Aduba) from Netflix's prison-set series Orange Is The New Black.

The look also featured Julianne's hair twisted up into an approximation of Bantu knots, a popular hairstyle in Black and African cultures.

Julianne was later forced to apologize for the offensive costume. 

'I am a huge fan of the show Orange Is the New Black, actress Uzo Aduba, and the character she has created,' she wrote on Twitter. 'It certainly was never my intention to be disrespectful or demeaning to anyone in any way. I realize my costume hurt and offended people and I truly apologize.'

Julianne Hough's offensive 2013 look, in which she appeared as Orange Is The New Black character Crazy Eyes, has been used as a warning to avoid Blackface costumes over the past decade

Offensive Halloween costumes targeting multiple races and ethnicities

Some of the worst — and laziest — costumes have arisen from celebrities trying to dress up as people of other races and ethnicities.

Even though some of the looks were intended to be innocent gestures, or even tributes, they nonetheless infuriated fans.

Former Real Housewives Of New York City star Luann de Lesseps was forced to apologize after she dressed as Diana Ross for Halloween.

The costume looked more like Marge Simpson with its comically large Afro wig, and although Luann looked extra tan, she claimed that she hadn't additionally darkened her skin in a subsequent apology on Watch What Happens Live.

'I had bronzer on that I wear normally like the rest of my skin. I’m tan, like right now,' she claimed. 'So I didn’t add anything or would ever, ever dream of doing a blackface. Ever ... I’m very sorry to everyone out there if I offended anyone.'

Tia Mowry, who identifies as Black, irked some fans when she posted photos of herself with heavy makeup, a stylized wig and a colorful fan to transform into what was described as a Japanese Geisha.

In 2014, Ellie Goulding came under fire for wearing a Native American costume with a beaded front piece.

She posted the costume to Instagram, but later deleted the offending images.

Hilary Duff and her then-boyfriend Jason Walsh made a similar blunder at the 2016 Casamigos Halloween party, which was the site of Julianne Hough's earlier offensive costume. 

Jason dressed up as a stereotypical Native American chief, while Hilary was a pants-free pilgrim.

Former RHOC star Kelly Dodd and her husband Rick Leventhal managed to be doubly offensive in 2021. 

She dressed as a Native American to 'celebrate' her 'heritage.' However, fans didn't buy her excuse for the stereotypical outfit, as she only learned of her 'heritage from a DNA test. 

Many Native Americans require that a person has been a part of an established tribe throughout their life in order to claim Native American heritage.

Leventhal managed to offend in a different way. He was dressed in a comical cowboy garb, which he explained was to look like Alec Baldwin in Western gear on the set of his cursed film Rust.

Baldwin shot and killed the film's cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, and injured its director, Joel Souza, during a rehearsal in front of the camera, though he has claimed that he did not pull the trigger.

Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter for the incident — twice — though the charges were eventually thrown out by a judge after the prosecution was accused of withholding evidence. 

Heidi Klum was accused of wearing a racist costume and mocking Hinduism when she dressed up as the blue-skinned deity while sporting multiple fake arms at her 2008 Halloween party.

Hilary Duff and her then-boyfriend Jason Walsh made a similar blunder at the 2016 Casamigos Halloween party, which was the site of Julianne Hough's earlier offensive costume. Jason dressed up as a stereotypical Native American chief, while Hilary was a pantsless pilgrim
Former RHOC star Kelly Dodd and her husband Rick Leventhal managed to be doubly offensive in 2021. She dressed as a Native American to 'celebrate' her 'heritage,' while he dressed as Alec Baldwin in costume from his on-set Rust shooting
Heidi Klum was accused of wearing a racist costume and mocking Hinduism when she dressed up as the blue-skinned deity while sporting multiple fake arms at her 2008 Halloween party

Harry Hamlin's Nazi no-no

Harry Hamlin stoked controversy — again at the Casamigos Halloween party — in 2015. 

For the party, he was dressed in a black leather biker jacket over a red shirt with a black-and-white swastika. 

The infamous Nazi symbol had been provocatively worn by the Sex Pisols 'bassist' and punk rocker Sid Vicious, whom Hamlin was dressed as.

He was joined by his wife Lisa Rinna, who wore her own punk looked and a curly blond wig to transform into Vicious' ill-fated girlfriend Nancy Spungen.

Spungen died in 1978 after being stabbed in the abdomen with a knife owned by Vicious, though other friends and acquaintances who may have tried to rob the couple have been suggested as possible culprits.

Vicious was charged with second-degree murder by died of a drug overdose in 1979 before his trial began.

Despite tastelessly dressing up as Sid Vicious and his alleged murder victim, it was the swastika that most offended social media users.

Rinna and Hamlin apologized for the couple's costume on Instagram after the party.

'I'm sorry... If I hurt you ❤️ we were being authentic to the characters of Sid and Nancy for our Halloween costumes,' they wrote. 'I'm sorry... If I hurt you ❤️ we were being authentic to the characters of Sid and Nancy for our Halloween costumes.'

In 2015, Harry Hamlin attended the Casamigos Halloween Party with his wife Lisa Rinna. He dressed as the Sex Pistols 'bassist' Sid Vicious, while she was his girlfriend and alleged murder victim, Nancy Spungen
It was the Nazi swastika on his shirt — which Vicious wore in real life —that most offended social media users. Harry and Lisa later apologized on her Instagram page

Billie Eilish's age-gap controversy

In 2022, Billie Eilish and her boyfriend Jesse Rutherford grossed out some of her fans by dressing as the ultimate May–December couple.

For a costume party appearance featuring Billie's brother Finneas, Billie, then 20, dressed up as a comical baby.

Her boyfriend Jesse, then 31, opted to go in the opposite direction by dressing up as an old man.

The look may have been intended to mock overly fans who criticized their 11-year age gap, but the extreme difference in their costumes — and the fact that Billie was dressed as a child — grossed out some fans.

In 2022, Billie Eilish and her boyfriend Jesse Rutherford grossed out some of her fans by dressing as the ultimate May–December couple. The singer, 20, dressed up as a baby, while Jesse, then 31, was made-up to look like an old man

Gross-out misfires and oddities

Heidi Klum is no stranger to over-the-top, shocking and sometimes gory costumes at her annual Halloween parties.

But her 2022 costume, in which she transformed into a giant worm, was one of her most revolting looks.

Only a suggestion of Heidi's face was visible behind the grotesque costume, which otherwise enveloped her body.

The look didn't play to any traditional Halloween themes or provide any scares, but it did turn stomachs.

Heidi's husband Tom Kaulitz accompanied her as a fisherman who had ripped out his eyeball with his own fishing hook as he attempted to string up the giant worm.

The try-hard costume was one of the model's most over-the-top looks to date, but failed to hit on the playful spirit of Halloween.

Al Roker had a similar misfire with a 2015 Charlie Brown costume. 

Heidi Klum is no stranger to over-the-top, shocking and sometimes gory costumes at her annual Halloween parties. But her 2022 costume, in which she transformed into a giant worm, was one of her most revolting looks
The look didn't play to any traditional Halloween themes or provide any scares, but it did turn stomachs
Al Roker had a similar misfire with a 2015 Charlie Brown costume. Although his outfit perfectly matched the Peanuts character's clothing, the prosthetics he used to achieve Charlie's bulbous bald head looked bizarre and creepy, rather than charming
In 2014, Katy Perry fell victim to a low-energy costume when she dressed up as a Flamin' Hot Cheeto. It wasn't the last time that she would dress up as a giant food item, but the costume wasn't especially funny or bizarre
Hugh Grant's Halloween sins were mild compared to other celebrity outfits. His modest lion suit doesn't appear to have offended anyone, but its one of the lazier outfits a star of his stature as tried to get away with in recent years

Although his outfit perfectly matched the Peanuts character's clothing, the prosthetics he used to achieve Charlie's bulbous bald head looked bizarre and creepy, rather than charming.

In 2014, Katy Perry fell victim to a low-energy costume when she dressed up as a Flamin' Hot Cheeto. 

It wasn't the last time that she would dress up as a giant food item, but the costume wasn't especially funny or bizarre.

Hugh Grant's Halloween sins were mild compared to other celebrity outfits. His modest lion suit doesn't appear to have offended anyone, but its one of the lazier outfits a star of his stature as tried to get away with in recent years.