The two friends handily won the contest due to their striking and uncanny resemblance to the real-life famous duo.
Two friends, Steve O’Brien, 58, and Bucky Kosek, 38, from Santa Rosa, California, stole the spotlight at their local Halloween costume contest by dressing up as the unlikely but famous couple, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.
The unconventional pairing was suggested by Steve’s wife, Tanika O’Brien, and it turned out to be a winning idea.
Tanika’s inspiration for this creative costume idea struck in late September when she realized that her friend Bucky, a data analyst, bore a striking resemblance to the NFL star Travis Kelce.
With Halloween approaching, the trio decided to take on the challenge.
Steve fully committed to his transformation into Taylor Swift, sporting a flawless face of makeup and a striking blonde wig.
To complete his look, he donned an American football jacket adorned with the number 87, matching Travis Kelce‘s jersey number.
Bucky embraced the role of Travis Kelce by wearing the football star’s jersey and a pair of sunglasses. The two friends even went the extra mile, mimicking the famous couple’s body language and walking hand in hand, adding authenticity to their costumes.
Their outstanding portrayal of the celebrity couple captivated the audience at the Santa Rosa Golf Club and Beach Club, where the Halloween contest took place. The crowd was so impressed that Steve and Bucky were crowned the winners of the competition, earning them a well-deserved free dinner.
Initially, Steve, a homebuilder, was hesitant about dressing up as the pop star. However, Tanika, a real estate agent, spent weeks persuading him to join in on the fun, and he finally agreed just a week before the contest was set to take place on October 25.
Tanika humorously shared her strategy, saying: “I’ve been pitching it to him for the last 30 days. I have no idea what changed. I just said to him, ‘Do you want to win?'”
Steve, in good spirits, explained: “Originally I said no as I thought it would be a lot of effort to pull it off. I changed my mind when I realized we would win hands down if we did pull it off and a few beers were involved.”
Although initially unsure about the costume, Steve fully embraced his role once he saw how well it worked and even insisted on makeup. He said: “In the end, we really only did it to win. People have been consumed with it. The entire club is talking about it. Everyone just said great job. That was amazing.”
Tanika was also in awe of her husband’s dedication to the act: “The way he walked. His body language. I think he really did his research. He insisted I do his makeup. I just basically did my usual look on him, and it worked great.”