The “Today” show and “Good Morning America” are constantly in a battle for viewers, and everyone knows there’s one surefire way to make sure people tune in to your morning show on Oct. 31: Embarrass yourself with Halloween costumes.
It’s a glorious tradition for the anchors, who say goodbye to their dignity, and to viewers, who get to judge them. Whose were most embarrassing? This year actually had a very sharp divide, as “Today” show went with a nostalgia theme, while “Good Morning America” went with current events. (“CBS This Morning,” in case you didn’t know, doesn’t do costumes.)
“Today” kicked things off with a time warp back to the 1990s, especially fitting because co-host Carson Daly was a momentous figure in the 90s as the host of MTV’s “Total Request Live.” Daly dressed as, well, himself, as he did a video intro to all the costumes:
“Today” also included Matt Lauer in the Jerry Seinfeld “puffy shirt,” in a bit of corporate NBC synergy with Bryant Gumble:
Al Roker as Steve Urkel from “Family Matters”:
Savannah Guthrie as Demi Moore on that famous 1991 cover of Vanity Fair:
Kathie Lee Gifford as her former “Live!” co-host Regis Philbin, while Hoda Kotb took on the role of Kathie Lee:
Tamron Hall and Willie Geist as Mia Wallace and Vincent Vega from “Pulp Fiction”:
Jenna Bush Hager as her grandma, former first lady Barbara Bush, while doing the macarena for good measure:
Over on “Good Morning America,” the anchors took the opposite approach and parodied the biggest pop culture moments of 2016, with a “horror movie” that referenced “Stranger Things” and a giant Pokemon hunt with Robin Roberts as a Pokemon trainer. The costumes included:
Share this articleShareLara Spencer as “Lara-zander Hamilton,” doing her best Lin-Manuel Miranda impression:
Michael Strahan embracing life as Pikachu:
Alfonso Ribeiro and Sara Haines as stars from “Ghostbusters,” accompanied by Ginger Zee as Dory of “Finding Dory” and Jesse Palmer as Captain America:
T.J. Holmes as Tyler Perry’s Madea:
Amy Robach covering her face as pop star Sia:
“Dancing With the Stars” pros Maks Chmerkovskiy and Peta Murgatroyd as the Joker and Harley Quinn:
And finally, the best face-off: “Today’s” puppy, Charlie (dressed as a 90s beanie baby), versus “GMA’s” Doug the pug in a pumpkin suit:
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