Halloween 2025: How to transform your selfie into a spookie AI portrait with Gemini – 7 Viral prompts

As people across the globe mark Halloween on 31 October to honour those who have passed on, the internet is abuzz with a hauntingly creative trend. Using Gemini’s latest image generation model, Nano Banana, users are transforming ordinary selfies into eerie, hyper-realistic portraits filled with ghostly details, glowing pumpkins, and chilling backdrops.

Traditionally observed on the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day, Halloween heralds the start of the Hallowmas season, a time devoted to remembering the departed, including saints, martyrs, and all souls who have gone before us.

In this article, we explore the viral AI prompt trends that are helping users craft their own hauntingly beautiful portraits for the spooky season.

Viral Gemini prompts taking over the internet

1. The Mafia Meets the Monsters

One of the most shared prompts comes from X user @fahabib91, who encouraged Gemini users to try the following:

“8k Hyper-realistic, A cinematic photo of a man (keep it real face 100% from uploaded image) he is wearing mafia suits with black boots, sitting on a bean bag holding a cigar in a circle surrounded by famous horror movie villains: Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, Chucky, Pennywise the Clown, and Ghostface. They all sit together in seats on a couch, as if casually talking and smoking a cigar.”

2. The Half-Human, Half-Skull Portrait

Another viral creation, shared by @Samann_ai, takes a more hauntingly artistic approach with this detailed prompt:

“Create an ultra close-up 3:4 portrait of (CHARACTER), centered, camera extremely near the face. Vertical split down the midline: left side living skin, right side realistic human skull (or swap sides if requested). Premium black mood: deep matte black background, dramatic low-key lighting, soft Rembrandt key at 45°, crisp rim on hairline, high contrast, no visible backdrop. Living side: hyper-real pores, subtle peach-fuzz, hydrated highlights, calm neutral expression, closed lips, eye tack-sharp with catchlight. Skull side: museum-grade realism; sharp sutures, micro-pitting, hairline cracks, dark patina in cavities. Mix of decayed and intact bone: some teeth chipped and eroded, others clean and intact; patchy erosion on zygomatic and maxilla; deep shadow inside the eye socket.
Seam: perfectly aligned anatomy at nose bridge, philtrum and jaw; no displacement or double features.
Composition: symmetrical, forehead to chin fully in frame, no cropping of the chin or skull. Lens & focus: full-frame 90–105mm macro look, f/2.8, extremely shallow DOF—focus on the living eye and front teeth; ultra-sharp details.
Color & grade: cinematic photoreal, neutral skin tones, bone slightly warm; no colour cast. Styling notes (optional): (hair / crown / glasses / earrings) kept minimal and only on the living side; no text, watermark, border, blood or gore. Quality tags: hyper-realistic, ultra-detailed, masterpiece, high-res, editorial. Parameters: aspect ratio 3:4, close-up, head-and-chin in frame.”

3. The Gothic Portrait in Candlelight

In another of @Samann_ai’s imaginative prompts, users can generate portraits steeped in gothic elegance:

“Create a hyper-real 3:4 portrait of (CHARACTER) seated upright on a high-back Victorian armchair upholstered in burnt-orange velvet, centered, hands gently folded. A Halloween skeleton stands just behind the chair on camera-left, resting one bony hand on (CHARACTER)’s shoulder. Dress (CHARACTER) in an elegant Halloween outfit that fits their persona (gothic tailoring and/or lace), with a black-and-orange palette and fine textures. Scene set in a moody dark room: black paneled walls, big spiderweb decor, warm string lights, carved pumpkins on the floor, and wrought-iron candelabras with tall candles. Lighting is cinematic low-key: soft candle glow, subtle rim light, shallow depth of field. Camera at eye level, ~85mm, f/2–2.8, crisp eyes, rich fabric detail, natural skin, clean hands. Wood floor and vintage side tables visible. Ultra-detailed, 8k photoreal, PBR materials, no motion blur. Aspect ratio 3:4, portrait framing.”

This moody Victorian setting creates a beautifully eerie tableau worthy of a gothic novel.

Google’s Spooky Nano Banana Prompts

Even Google has joined in on the Halloween fun. In a blog post published on 24 October, the company shared several creative ideas for using its Nano Banana model to generate haunting visuals.

1. Become a Victorian Ghost

“Transform this person into a semi-skeletal spectral translucent Victorian ghost. Victorian clothing. Maintain existing pose and framing. ultra-realistic photograph. black and white Daguerreotype. wet plate photography. streaks. Stains.”

2. Star in Your Own 90s-Style Horror Poster

“Create a photo of me in a dream Y2K style portrait of me laying in shiny purple bedding as I hold a large 90s-style landline in a daydreaming pose. My long hair falls freely in loose curls. I wear delicate jewellery and gold chunky rings. The room behind me is girly with 90s-style posters that are licence-free. My makeup is simple yet glamorous with pink lip gloss. The photo should have a grainy 90s style with a light source like a lamp in a dimply lit room at night. A 90s photo album rests beside me with a disposable camera. A ghost in a bedsheet stands behind me staring at me, slightly transparent, with its body dimly lit, and it should be standing in the doorway of a dimly lit hallway. The background behind it should be slightly dark and ominous.”

3. Fun with Pets and Costumes

“Turn my cat, Sunny, into a cartoon character wearing a wizard costume.”
“Dress my dog in different costumes for Halloween.”