Princesses, Zombies and Charlie Sheen, 'Oh My'

If you venture out downtown Saturday, there's a good chance you'll see droves of ghostly-looking zombies, superheroes in tights, a flock of Angry Birds and an army of tiger blood-drinking Charlie Sheen warlocks.

The costumes are among the most popular this year, according to some local party store sales associates and online lists of the most sought after Halloween getups.

Zombies are at the top of the list, with 2.6 million men, women and children, planning to dress as the walking dead, according to a survey from the National Retail Federation.

Zombies have taken over the airwaves quite literally this year, with a variety of new television series and movies. The exposure influenced some trick-or-treater's halloween choices this year, according to Shannon Jellesma, a team leader at Party City, located off Atlanta Highway in Athens.

“It's a big thing right now,” Jellesma said.

Zombies came in number four as the most popular costume this year for adults behind witches, pirates and vampires, in the NRF survey. Princesses, witches, spider-man, pirates and pumpkins we're the top five for children.

In Athens, princesses and other Disney characters we're in high demand at party stores.

Party city sold out weeks ago of costumes for the popular Disney "Toy Story" Woody and Buzz characters, as well as Repunzel dresses and wigs from the new movie "Tangled," according to Jellesma.

At Junkman's Daughter's Brother, off Clayton Street downtown, Becky Brooks, a costume manager at the store, has fielded calls from people looking for Black Swan and Zombie Amy Winehouse costumes, she said.

Other people are looking for more affordable options this year, and haven't been buying complete costumes, she said.

“Most people are buying a few random things to finish their costumes,” Brooks said. “So it's a little hard to tell.”

Depending on where you go for a list of the year's hot costumes, you'll find differing opinions on what pop culture icons people will model their costumes off of this year. 

According to the New York Daily News, rap artist Niki Minaj had the most Google searches. Time says Angry Bird costumes have the most search requests, and Steven Silverstein, CEO of the country's largest Halloween retailer, told CNN Charlie Sheen was the top choice.

Consumers are expected to spend more on costumes this year, with the average person spending $26.52 on their gear, or a total of $1 billion on children's costumes, according to the NRF. Adults are projected to spend $1.21 billion, followed by pet owners, who are forecasted to spend $310 million.