{
  "id": 17279118,
  "title": "From horror icons to viral toys, Halloween costumes take quirky turn in US",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/from-horror-icons-to-viral-toys-halloween-costumes-take-quirky-turn-17279118",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-30T19:52:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/world/20261031/from-horror-icons-to-viral-toys-halloween-costumes-take-quirky-turn-in-us"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Halloween costumes in the United States are taking a quirky turn this year, with internet trends shaping the choices of many Americans. While classic favorites like witches, superheroes, and princesses remain popular, especially among children, a new wave of inspiration is coming from horror movie characters, squishy stress toys, and viral internet sensations. According to Google's 2026 Frightgeist list, Buddy the Unicorn from the horror movie \"Buddy\" tops the list, followed by NeeDoh, a popular line of colorful stress toys. Characters from horror films such as Nikki from \"Obsession\" and Agamemnon from \"The Odyssey\" also rank high on the trending list. The rankings indicate the fastest-growing search trends rather than the most popular costumes overall, demonstrating how rapidly evolving internet culture can influence fashion choices during the Halloween season.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Local Germany",
        "title": "No Nazis, no fake guns: The Halloween costumes that are illegal in Germany",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/no-nazis-no-fake-guns-the-halloween-costumes-that-are-illegal-in",
        "published": "2026-10-30T16:11:15.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}