If, this Halloween, you decide to take your costume down the pop culture route, you have plenty of options in front of you. The year 2014 may have inspired you to dress up as a relevant celebrity and, if that’s the case, we have some words of warning.

While it’s all in good fun, no one wants to be the costumed party goer who ended up wearing something in very poor taste. It is the age of the Internet, after all, and there’s always the chance that your offensive costume could end up getting torn apart on Twitter and in the news. (Remember the girl who dressed up as a Boston Marathon bombing victim?)

To ensure your pop culture costume gets the right kind of attention this year, we’ve put together a list of living celebrities to steer clear from. (Deceased celebrities are a different beast, but we’ll just put it out there that being Robin Williams is too soon.)

Ray Rice

The one that inspired this article, it should go without saying. But, dressing up as the former Baltimore Raven who has been ousted from the NFL after video surfaced of him knocking his girlfriend unconscious won’t get you any laughs. Worse, it will basically guarantee that your poor decisions end up on the Internet. In fact, it’s already started happening. Don’t be these people.

Amanda Bynes

The former Nickelodeon star resurfaced in the public eye this year for all the wrong reasons – after spending time in rehab and under the care of her parents, it seemed as though Amanda was getting back on track after a series of troubling behavior in 2013. But this year, she made more unsettling appearances in the public, suddenly got engaged and went on a Twitter rant saying that her dad abused her, before taking it all back. It’s brought up how we treat people, especially celebrities, with mental illnesses, and while we’ve got a long way to go in fixing that issue, a good start is not mocking someone who’s clearly unwell on Halloween.

Honey Boo Boo or Mama June 

It feels like just yesterday that Honey Boo Boo was one of the hot pop culture costumes of the year. But in 2014, TLC’s “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” has been canceled after photos surfaced of Honey Boo Boo’s mom, Mama June, reunited with her ex-boyfriend, a convicted child molester who was recently released from prison after serving 10 years for forcing oral sex upon an eight-year-old. Soon, more allegations surfaced that the eight-year-old in question was June’s oldest daughter, and that June didn’t believe her at the time when she heard about the molestation. It just keeps getting worse – and it’s a truly bone-chilling situation. Better to leave your Honey Boo Boo tiara retired.

Stephen Collins

Another costume that proves child molestation doesn’t add up to a hilarious Halloween costume: The former 7th Heaven star is back in the headlines after a phone-call confession was released to TMZ. And while it’s certainly shocking that Reverend Eric Camden is now caught up in a child molestation scandal, don’t forget how many people’s lives are affected by such a tragedy. But the question is, why would you want to dress up like him anyway?

Renée Zellweger

Earlier this month, Renée Zellweger caused an online frenzy after she appeared at an event flaunting a brand new face. While her extreme plastic surgery has made her basically unrecognizable, it’s also sparked discussions on how we judge and scrutinize women’s appearances — and even more critically as they age. Regardless of your opinion on the matter, it’s best to just let this one go this Halloween.

The Ebola Czar

Anything Ebola-related is guaranteed to get some eye rolls and uncomfortable glances. While going as the Obama-appointed Ebola Czar isn’t as bad as, say, dressing in a “Sexy Ebola Hazmat Suit,” let’s just leave the virus out of the celebrations. No one will ever look back on Halloween 2014 and wish they would have capitalized on Ebola.

Featured image via Lwp Kommunikáció/Flickr

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