Lights, Camera, Costumes!

“Who doesn’t want to be Superman?” — Dorothy Sutton, The Costume Place, New York

Halloween costume top sellers have been film-linked since the “Wizard of Oz” debuted in 1939. Harry Potter, Batman and that mean, green light-saber-swingin’ machine, Yoda, have all inspired best-selling costumes. 2006 won’t be any different.

Recently, TDmonthly Magazine spoke with numerous movie and costume people to find out what they predict will be hot for Halloween in 2006.

May 26^th: the release of “X-Men 3.” Get those claws sharpened: “X-Men 3” is set to tear up the box office. Wolverine is predicted to lead his dress-up pack, as he did in the past, along with Storm (although Beast and Angel costumes could come on strong).

“X-Men costumes have done well in the past, if not stellar,” said Roger Treiman, president of Aloha Costumes in Honolulu, Hawaii. “It will depend on how they redesign the outfits. A good redesign that was closer to the movies would be great.”

June 2^nd: “Nacho Libre” — “It’s going to be a funny movie,” mentioned Donald Rutkin of Donald’s Dungeon in Minneapolis. “Jack Black being a luchador, all that Mexican wrestling stuff. There are a lot of kids who like the masked wrestlers. I think it could be this year’s ‘Napoleon Dynamite.’”

June 9^th: Disney and Pixar release “Cars,” the next big CGI film from the director of the “Toy Story” series. The Woody and Buzz Lightyear costumes were huge in the past, but what do you do for cars?

Shari Maxwell, vice-president of Extreme Halloween Inc. in South Florida, had an idea: “There are riding costumes, where the child is part of the car/horse/truck. Maybe 'Cars' will use something like that. They are very popular. It would depend on the age range the movie appealed to. The younger the better for riding costumes.”

June 30^th: “Superman Returns.” Here’s the big one for adults and kids alike. This is Hollywood’s number one bet for a summer blockbuster, and the merchandising is going to be fantastic. According to an anonymous executive at Warner Brothers, the retro look of the costume “should really be different and yet familiar.”

Dorothy Sutton, owner of the Costume Place in New York City thought that Superman costumes would gain huge popularity after the movie, especially when they come in different qualities. “Not everyone can pull off Superman in tights, but it will be nice for those who can,” she said.

July 7^th: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.” Pirate costumes have always been great sellers, and “Pirates of the Caribbean” outfits were already high on everyone’s list, according to Shari Maxwell.

“The second 'Pirates' will be a slam-dunk,” stated Marcus Simpson, owner of the Costume Corner in Boise, Idaho. “Everyone loves pirate costumes. They’re so easy to accessorize: eye patches, a hook, a sword. They are the greatest costume from my standpoint.”

July 14^th: “Ghost Rider.” This Nick Cage film based on the comic book already has a Disguise Costume licensed. Though it isn’t selling that strongly, it should get a big kick from the movie’s release.

Perennial movie characters represented by costumes will be in force for Halloween 2006, as well. Batman should be strong, and the biggest costume of them all, Spider-Man, will take to the streets, as there’s another Spidey film coming out in 2007 and a Batman film in 2008. As usual, it should be a Hollywood Halloween.