Katy Perry became a judge on “American Idol” in 2018 and instantly set the internet on fire with her unpredictable personality and eye-popping wardrobe. The 13-time Grammy nominee is always at her absolute best on “Idol’s” annual Disney Night, where she goes all-in on the theme and dresses up in extravagant costumes as some of the most well-known characters of all time. Tinker Bell? Check! Snow White? Check! Urusula (with tentacles)? Check! Her cohorts Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Ryan Seacrest have yet to dress up, though they always have fun playing off of Katy’s unbridled enthusiasm. Relive all of Katy Perry’s Disney costumes on “American Idol” by scrolling through our photos below. What will she dress up as next?
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Katy Perry as Cinderella
Image Credit: ABC April 29, 2018 (Season 16)
In the lead-up to Katy’s first-ever Disney Night, she appeared in a pre-taped video as Cinderella with the remaining Top 10 contestants. Together, they sang a magical rendition of “When You Wish Upon a Star” from “Pinocchio.” When the cameras went live, she was no longer wearing Cinderella’s silver dress and sparkling crown, but was instead dressed up as …
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Katy Perry as Snow White
Image Credit: ABC April 29, 2018 (Season 16)
Katy’s inaugural Disney Night costume on the big stage was Snow White. To be clear, she didn’t just “dress up” as the raven-haired princess — she also absorbed her personality, complete with high-pitched voice and desire for wanting a prince. In a memorable moment, when Ryan teased her about her love life, Katy responded by singing, “One day my prince will come,” a reference to the song “Someday My Prince Will Come” from “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.”
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Katy Perry as Ursula
Image Credit: ABC April 21, 2019 (Season 17)
Katy’s first Disney villain was Ursula, the purple sea witch from “The Little Mermaid” who stole Ariel’s voice. The “Firework” and “Roar” singer had the audience on the floor laughing over her various props (including crab legs and shrimp cocktail) and her own twisted tentacles. “It’s dangerous,” Ryan joked at one point when Katy wrapped her black octopus appendages around the host’s neck.
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Katy Perry as Mrs. Jumbo
Image Credit: ABC May 10, 2020 (Season 18)
The 18th season will be remembered as the one where the contestants had to be sent home for the live shows due to the Covid-19 pandemic. But Katy didn’t let that stop her from getting into the animated spirit. During the combined Disney Night/Mother’s Day episode, she dressed up as Mrs. Jumbo, aka Dumbo’s mom, while she judged remotely from her couch at home. Her puppy Nugget was decked out in a cute Dumbo costume. Katy was pregnant at the time with her and Orlando Bloom’s daughter, Daisy Dove.
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Katy Perry as Tinker Bell
Image Credit: ABC May 2, 2021 (Season 19)
Katy was the spitting image of “Peter Pan’s” Tinker Bell when the reality TV show returned live to the studio for its 19th season (and fourth on ABC). In addition to her lime green dress and fluttery fairy wings, she wore a white-blonde wig with matching bleached eyebrows. The “Idol” judge later joked that her prosthetic elf ears were a reference to her fiance Orlando’s character in “The Lord of the Rings” films.
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Katy Perry as Ariel
Image Credit: ABC/Raymond Liu May 1, 2022 (Season 20)
Katy was rolled onto the stage as Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” on the fifth anniversary of her dressing up for Disney Night. As if that wasn’t iconic enough, she soon fell over backwards in her chair thanks to her bulky fin — you can’t make this stuff up! Later, when Top 10 finalist Nicolina performed Ursula’s “Poor Unfortunte Souls” song on the big stage, Katy as Ariel pretended to be terrified and held up her fork (aka her dinglehopper) for protection. We loved every single second of this.
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Katy Perry as Elastigirl
Image Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless May 14, 2023 (Season 21)
After the prior year’s debacle where she fell out of her chair on live TV, Katy chose a costume in 2023 that allowed her full access to all of her limbs. In honor of Mother’s Day, she dressed up as Elastigirl, aka Mrs. Incredible from “The Incredibles,” and joked at one point that she was the Daniel Day-Lewis of becoming one with her characters every time Disney Night rolled around.
