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K-dramas have officially become the unofficial Halloween costume catalogue of the streaming era. From Netflix superhits to JTBC slow-burns, Korean dramas have produced character looks so visually iconic that you can spot a Squid Game tracksuit or a Moon Dong-eun ponytail from across a crowded party. The best part for cosplayers, almost every look on this list can be pulled together from a thrift store, a school uniform shop and a bit of strategic eyeliner.
Whether you want something playful, something terrifying or something so K-drama-coded that fellow fans will gasp at the front door, this guide rounds up five iconic K-drama Halloween costumes you can actually recreate. Grab a green tracksuit, find a friend to play your nemesis, and let the photo ops begin.
1. Squid Game: Player 456, the Front Man and a Young-hee doll group costume
Squid Game has become so synonymous with Halloween that costume shops now stock the green tracksuit alongside witch hats and Spider-Man suits. The hero look is Seong Gi-hun's Player 456 fit: a teal zip-up jacket with white piping over a white tee printed with the digits 456, matching teal joggers and plain white slip-on sneakers. Add a short tousled wig if your hair is long and you are good to go. As The Korea Herald noted when the show first detonated globally, the tracksuit became an overnight Halloween staple thanks to its instantly readable silhouette and pop-of-colour green.
For a small group, build a Squid Game ensemble. One person wears the pink soldier jumpsuit with the famous black geometric mask, another goes full Front Man in a long black hooded coat and a glossy black mask, and a third dresses as the giant Young-hee doll from Red Light, Green Light in an orange dress, white socks and a pigtailed wig. Suddenly you have a couples or trio costume with built-in photo concepts.
2. The Glory: Moon Dong-eun's avenging school teacher
Song Hye-kyo's Moon Dong-eun in The Glory is the dark academia Halloween costume of K-drama lovers' dreams. The grown-up Dong-eun lives in muted tones: long charcoal coats, monochrome turtlenecks, plain black skirts, low ponytail, no makeup. The eerie part is what hides underneath: scar makeup along the arms and collarbone to recreate the burn marks her bullies left on her with curling irons, plus a notebook of "perpetrators" tucked under one arm as a prop.
For a flashback version, you can pair a Korean high school uniform with a damp, dishevelled wig and the same scar makeup to channel teen Dong-eun. Carry a Go board to nod to her revenge strategy. The costume reads instantly to anyone who binged the Netflix smash and is one of the few looks on this list that works as a solo statement without props.
3. All of Us Are Dead: bloody Hyosan High zombie
If you want the easiest, most photogenic horror costume of the night, the All of Us Are Dead zombie student is hard to beat. The Hyosan High uniform is a green and navy plaid skirt or trousers, white shirt, dark green vest and black blazer or cardigan. Apply pale grey foundation, sunken eye shadow and dripping red blood across the collar, sleeves and shirtfront. Cock your head to one side, hold a tattered backpack and you are an instant zombie classmate. The show's director told The Korea Times the school uniform was deliberately designed to act as a clean canvas for the blood, which is exactly why the look photographs so well under flash.
Bonus tip: the half-zombie hybrids like immune Nam-ra or transformed Gwi-nam read just as clearly. Add a milky white contact lens in one eye for Nam-ra or a long fringe of stringy hair and a missing eye effect for Gwi-nam and you have a more advanced version of the same outfit.
4. Itaewon Class: Park Sae-roy and the DanBam crew
Itaewon Class is the Halloween group costume hiding in plain sight. Park Seo-joon's Park Sae-roy is unmistakable thanks to that infamous chestnut bowl-cut wig, a black biker jacket layered over a white tee, dark slim jeans and chunky boots. Carry a small wooden plaque or chalkboard that reads "DanBam" to seal the reference. The Korea Herald, recapping Park's career, called Sae-roy the role that turned the actor into a cultural moment, which makes the costume the kind of thing fellow K-drama watchers will recognise from the haircut alone.
Drag friends along as the DanBam staff. Jo Yi-seo can wear a sharp blazer dress and a beanie with a steely glare, Ma Hyun-yi swaps in a chef coat, Choi Seung-kwon comes in workwear and a fake tattoo sleeve. Suddenly your house party has its own Itaewon pop-up restaurant.
5. My Name: Yoon Ji-woo's undercover detective
For Halloween-goers who want sharp lines and a hint of menace, Han So-hee's Yoon Ji-woo in My Name is a brilliantly cinematic look. The undercover detective uniform is a long black trench coat over a fitted black tee, dark slim trousers and chunky combat boots, paired with a high ponytail and minimal smoky eye. As The Korea Times noted when the noir series premiered, Han So-hee's transformation into a revenge-driven anti-hero was striking enough to redefine her on-screen image, which is exactly the energy this costume channels.
The props sell it: a fake holstered pistol or a tactical baton, a fake police ID lanyard around the neck and a smudge of red on the knuckles as if you have just walked out of an alley brawl. If you want to lean even harder into Ji-woo's gang-affiliated arc, swap the trench for a black leather jacket and add a baseball bat as a quietly threatening accessory.
How to nail the K-drama Halloween look
Across all five costumes, the same rules apply. First, lean into the silhouette: tracksuits should be loose, school uniforms should be slightly oversized and trench coats should hit at the knee. Second, take time on makeup. K-drama looks tend to be either flawless and bare or full horror, so commit to one direction rather than meeting in the middle. Third, lock in one signature prop: a 456 number tag, a black notebook, a bloodied backpack, a DanBam plaque or a fake holster. Props photograph beautifully on social media and instantly tell strangers which K-drama you are dressed as.
Finally, do not be afraid to mix dramas inside a friend group. A Squid Game tracksuit, a Moon Dong-eun in a long coat, a bloody Hyosan student, an Itaewon Class bowl cut and a My Name detective walking into a Halloween party together is essentially a K-drama Avengers crossover. Bring a portable speaker that plays "Pink Soldiers" on a loop and your evening is set.
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