Everyone loves to dress up and celebrate the spooky season—even reality television. Every so often, television shows treat their viewers to a Halloween-centric episode. Whether it’s a themed competition or a Halloween party like no other, Halloween on reality television has ranged from spooky to kooky.
Like the genre itself, Halloween episodes on reality television have provided viewers with tricks and treats. With extravagant costumes, elaborate variety specials, and drama that rocked the franchise, these are some of the best Halloween-centric episodes. Some entries will include competiton-based series while others are unscripted docufollow. No matter what the show is, Halloween is alive and well!
10 ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Season 17, Episode 7
Even though Dancing with the Stars has had its fair share of complete Halloween-themed episodes, there was something about the Season 17 episode that was special. While the pairs didn’t do their own Halloween dance, the remaining competitors were split up into two groups for a Halloween-themed freestyle. The teams were chosen by the highest scoring couples, Amber Riley and Derek Hough (Team FoxingAwesome) and Elizabeth Berkley Lauren and Val Chmerkovskiy (Team Spooky BomBom). Team Spooky BomBom danced to “Bom Bom” by Sam and the Womp. It was a solid performance, but they were not nearly as iconic as their competitors.
Comprised of Corbin Bleu and Karina Smirnoff, Jack Osbourne and Cherly Burke, and Brant Daugherty and Peta Murgatroyd, they set the tone for the remainder of the season and future group dances. Team FoxingAwesome performed the viral hit, “What Does the Fox Say,” receiving a perfect score. It was iconic, and yearly Halloween viewing. It was so big, the team performed it at the finale alongside Ylvis.
- Release Date
- June 1, 2005
- Cast
- Carrie Ann Inaba , Bruno Tonioli , Len Goodman , Tom Bergeron , Cheryl Burke , Tony Dovolani , Derek Hough , Mark Ballas , Karina Smirnoff , Maksim Chmerkovskiy , Kym Johnson , Sasha Farber , Val Chmerkovskiy , Emma Slater , Sharna Burgess
- Main Genre
- Reality
- Seasons
- Studio
Watch On Hulu
9 ‘Nailed It’
Season 3, Episode 2
Clown haters beware. Nailed It is the Nicole Byer-hosted Neflix baking series that took on the craze of people trying, and failing, to make elaborate cakes. With three amateur bakers attempting to re-create edible masterpieces, there was one Season 3 episode that still haunts our dreams.
As the tagline for the episode stated, “What’s scarier than a cook who can’t read a recipe?” That clown cake. After making creepy, crawly bug cookies, the bakers were tasked to create a cotton candy-flavored cake of a creepy clown. The bust featured thin arms and a giant head with a menacing grin. Fortunately, no one could quite recreate it, so no other clown cake was as terrifying as the original.
Nailed It!
- Release Date
- March 9, 2018
- Cast
- Nicole Byer , Jacques Torres
- Main Genre
- Game Show
- Seasons
- 7
Watch On Netflix
8 ‘The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula’
Season 3, Episode 8
The Boulet Brother’s Dragula celebrates the alternative side of drag. While many of the drag monsters naturally lean into the haunts and horrors of the genre, the remaining monsters of Season 3 were tasked to take a classic Halloween costume archetype and elevate the concept into their own artistry. With only four monsters left, this crucial Floor Show would determine who would see their way into the final three. Landon Cider won the challenge with an exceptional twist on the Werewolf through the lens of a drag king. Dollya Black was the Grim Reaper, Lousianna Purchase was a Devil, and Priscilla Chambers took on Frankenstein.
Fans knew that Landon Cider was destined to win the season, they were eager to see who would join him in the finals. For the extermination challenge, the final four had to walk through a haunted house while avoiding traps and scare actors along the way. Whoever snatched the invite to the Top 3, The Lousianna Purchase was ultimately exterminated.
The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula
7 ‘The Real Housewives of New York City’
Season 10, Episode 1
Season premieres of any iteration of The Real Housewives often start off with a bang. Such was the case for the first episode of The Real Housewives of New York City. Titled “Gouls Just Wanna Have Fun,” the Halloween-centric episode set the tone for the explosive season. Dorinda Medley is playing host for an epic Halloween party. After some of the ladies were stressing over their Halloween costumes, what arrived at the event was quite a range. Bethenny Frankel came as her iteration of Barbie. Sonja Morgan is Lucille Ball. Ramona Singer is repurposing her Lip Sync BattleBritney Spears costume. After finally getting it fixed, Dorinda Medley is serving her best Lady Gaga.
And then there is Luann de Lesseps and her dark spray tan and Afro as Diana Ross. Who was supposed to tell her that could get her canceled? Nevertheless, the party was filled with the usual suspects doing their usual antics. With the liquor flowing, a wasted Bethenny and Ramona feuded about the location of a Hamptons property, which evolved into who owned more properties. Dorinda ended up being three sheets to the wind. Luanne and Carole Radziwill spat over breakups. And then, there was the random tree, which was not a decoration but an actual guest in costume. What a whirlwind!
- Release Date
- March 4, 2008
- Cast
- Ramona Singer , Luann de Lesseps , Sonja Morgan , Bethenny Frankel , Dorinda Medley , Carole Radziwill
- Seasons
- 15
- Creator(s)
- Scott Dunlop
6 ‘America’s Next Top Model’
Season 22, Episode 13
While it may not have been dubbed a Halloween special, Cycle 21 of America’s Next Top Model took the boys and the girls into the woods. And it wasn’t just a trip to the woods, it was a nighttime shoot. The spooky locale provided some haunting images, but the test was to have the models rely on their senses.
As a reminder, season winner Nyle DiMarco is deaf, which made it an even odder challenge all around. While he was at a disadvantage, he did manage to figure out a way to cue the photographer to optimize the shoot. By the end of the shoot, the models were stuck in a brutally cold cabin where they relied on one another for warmth. Overall, it was a haunting episode.
- Release Date
- May 19, 2003
- Cast
- Tyra Banks , Jay Manuel , Nigel Barker , J. Alexander , Kelly Cutrone , Twiggy , André Leon Talley , Janice Dickinson
- Main Genre
- Reality
- Creator(s)
- Tyra Banks
5 ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Season 21, Episode 9
Dancing with the Stars is truly made for theme nights. No matter what theme you throw at them, they are able to take any style of music or genre and tackle it through ballroom dance. As one of the fan-favorite themes, Halloween Night allows the celebrities and their professional partners to put on a costume and play a character.
For Season 21, two giant Halloween-themed movie franchises were given the freestyle group dance treatment. The Nightmare Before Christmas-inspired dance to “This Is Halloween” is one of the best-choreographed group routines the show has ever seen. It earned a perfect score. The other team tackled Ghostbusters with the title song. While they were not as solid, they still gave a dominating performance.
- Release Date
- June 1, 2005
- Cast
- Carrie Ann Inaba , Bruno Tonioli , Len Goodman , Tom Bergeron , Cheryl Burke , Tony Dovolani , Derek Hough , Mark Ballas , Karina Smirnoff , Maksim Chmerkovskiy , Kym Johnson , Sasha Farber , Val Chmerkovskiy , Emma Slater , Sharna Burgess
- Main Genre
- Reality
- Seasons
- Studio
Watch On Hulu
4 ‘Face Off’
Season 5, Episode 6
Face Off is the extraordinary SyFy reality competition series that watches a group of makeup artists vie for the top spot as they create prostheses for a variety of genres. During Season 5, the contestants were tasked in the Spotlight Challenge to create a monster based on a Halloween costume and throw in a gimmick.
The ten makeup artists had to battle one another as each monster was assigned to two artists.
The ten makeup artists had to battle one another as each monster was assigned to two artists. The five costumes included clown, devil, scarecrow, skeleton, and vampire. The result was simply exceptional and quite difficult to judge. The compare and contrast element tested the contestants in a different manner. In the end, it was Tate Steinsiek‘s skeleton that won the challenge.
Watch On AppleTV
3 ‘Huluween Dragstravaganza’
Variety Show
Drag has become one of the biggest mainstream art forms thanks to the rise of RuPaul’s Drag Race. For Halloween 2022, Hulu brought some of the biggest names from the world together for a hilarious and spooky romp to celebrate Halloween. With stars from RuPaul’s Drag Race, The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula, and legends of the scene, Huluween Dragstravaganza was a variety show that celebrated drag and the holiday in perfect fashion.
Hosted by Ginger Minj and Monét X Change, the show featured skits and performances that paid homage to classic horror films and characters. With a loose theme tying it all together, the cast was teleported to the “Land of Huluween.” While the kings and queens performed in a plethora of musical numbers, Huluween Dragstravaganza featured a special performance of “Cannibal” by Kesha. This is a timeless special that is bound to bring a smile to your face.
Watch On Hulu
2 ‘The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Titans’
Season 1, Episode 1
As the first official competitive All Star season, The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Titans brought together ten legends of the series to compete for the grand prize. To kick off the season, The Boulet Brothers tasked their monsters to celebrate Halloween with a Fright Feat of bobbing for apples in a cauldron of blood and guts and a Floor Show of a Halloween House Party. What sets this episode apart from literally any other episode of Dragula is the way that the Floor Show was filmed.
Rather than the typical stage presentation, the performance was a brilliantly directed campy trip through a retro film. The monsters had to reimagine a traditional Halloween costume as they lip synced to “I Was a Teenage Monster” by the Keystones. The result was brilliant. Between the tone of the song and the cinematography, this is easily one of the best moments in franchise history.
The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula
1 ‘The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’
Season 9, Episode 16
Sometimes, having a birthday that is close to a major holiday can be a major bummer—unless it means you can have a big blowout bash to celebrate both events at once. During Season 9 of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky celebrated their daughter’s October birthday with a Halloween monster mash. Only in the 90210 would the women go all out in the costume department. The central story of the party was Lisa Rinna arriving as her version of Erika Jayne. As she exclaimed, “You b***h, you dressed as me.” Jayne loved the costume and the commitment to the bit. The other women, well, felt the impression went too far.
It’s one thing to look like the character, and it’s another to then use it as a vessel to spew venom. It did not go over well because they felt it was Lisa’s excuse to be mean and thus, painted Erika in a bad light. But costume or not, the residual effects of Easter Bunny-gate came out as Lisa, as Erika said, “Giving Lisa her bunny back was really c***y.” Saying it in front of Kim Richards and her friends was quite tacky. This causes an escalation, but they decide to bury the hatchet. For now.
- Release Date
- October 14, 2010
- Creator
- Scott Dunlop, Alex Baskin, Kathleen French
- Cast
- Kyle Richards , Adrienne Maloof , Camille Grammer , Lisa Vanderpump
- Seasons
- 14
