How to Make a Riddler Costume

In the character's earliest comic book appearances, the Riddler wears a green unitard covered with black question marks, a wide purple belt and a purple domino mask (a mask that covers just the eyes). Other classic versions of the Riddler have him wear a green suit covered with question marks, a solid green blazer over a question-mark-covered shirt and tie and often a green or purple bowler hat. Any combination of these garments can make up an easy DIY Riddler costume, although it takes a little more effort to copy any of them with total precision.

Garments in a bright, solid shade of green are key to copying any of the Riddler's signature outfits. Look in thrift stores for a green blazer or suit or shop for matching green pajamas or a leggings and T-shirt combo as a DIY unitard. If you have sewing skills and the time and budget, you can create these garments from scratch. Another option is to buy light-colored garments and dye them green.

Use black fabric paint to cover one or more of the green garments with question marks of different sizes. You can do this freehand or print question marks on cardstock and cut them out to use as templates. Some versions of Riddler costumes have the motifs in different sizes all over the suit or unitard, and others have them just over one garment, so take your pick.

Cut out a domino mask—a mask in a figure-eight shape that covers just the eyes and temples—from purple felt. You can find printable templates online for this, or you can draw your own on paper. Sew a length of thin elastic at each side edge for attaching the mask around the head.

The Riddler sometimes wears a green or black bowler hat with a purple band. You should be able to find a bowler hat in a costume store, and you can spray paint it green or black if necessary. Measure around the circumference of the hat just above the brim. Cut out a long rectangle of purple felt matching the circumference of the hat plus 1 inch and about 2 inches wide. Wrap it around the hat and overlap the ends at the back with hot glue.

The Riddler character played by Paul Dano in the 2022 movie ​The Batman​ has a different look than previous versions of the character. Rather than appearing cartoonlike, this Riddler costume has a dark, militant vibe. It's still a relatively easy DIY, as the full-face hood is the only element of the costume you need to create from scratch. The others are items you should be able to find in a thrift store or military surplus store.

Measure the costume wearer's head circumference at the widest part. Divide this measurement in half and add 3 inches. This is the width of the hood pattern piece. Measure the length from the top of the head to the nape of the neck and add 1 inch. This is the height of the hood pattern piece. Draw a rectangle with those dimensions on paper and round it off at the upper corners. It should look like an upside-down letter "U" with the bottom legs connected. This is your hood pattern piece.

Use the paper pattern to cut two identical hood pieces out of the army-green fabric. Sew or use fabric glue to join two pieces along the side edges and curved upper edge, leaving the straight bottom edge open. Turn the hood right sides out and make sure it fits over the costume wearer's head.

With the full-face hood over the costume wearer's head, use chalk to mark the positions of their eyes, nostrils and mouth and then remove the hood. Cut out eye holes and a hole at the nostril level, trying on and adjusting as necessary so that the costume wearer can see and breathe properly. For the mouth, cut a hole and cover it with a rectangle of felt, sewn or glued only along the top and side edges, creating a vent at the base.

On the front right side of the jacket at chest level, use white fabric paint or a paint marker to add a hand-size question mark. At the north and south compass points around the question mark, draw vertical lines with two shorter perpendicular lines crossing each one. At the east and west compass points, draw horizontal lines with two shorter perpendicular lines across.

Along with the hood and jacket, wear black cargo-style pants, black work boots, black gloves and an army-green hoodie under the jacket. The Riddler wears eyeglasses with transparent frames in ​The Batman​ movie, so find a pair as close to this style as you can to complete the costume.