Judge Turpin from Sweeney Todd

Judge Turpin is the main antagonist in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. He is a corrupt judge who falsely convicts Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd to be with his wife. Unable to withstand his abuse, she poisons herself, and the judge takes custody of her daughter. When she turns sixteen, he offers his hand in marriage, and she refuses. The mistreatment of his family is Todd’s main motive for murder and revenge. In the Tim Burton adaptation, Alan Rickman (aka Professor Severus Snape) plays the crooked character.

Mrs. Nellie Lovett from Sweeney Todd

Mrs. Nellie Lovett is a main character in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. She runs a pie shop, but she claims she serves the “worst pies in London.” When Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd visits, she comes up with the idea to turn his victims into pies. Mrs. Lovett becomes infatuated with Mr. Todd and plans to live a happy, married life with him, but he kills her when it’s revealed she hid information about his ex-wife. She’s rather eccentric and psychopathic, but she serves as comic relief. Helena Bonham Carter plays the role in the Tim Burton movie, which inspired this costume guide. Sew the red trim on the blouse for that pop of color, and style your hair with a teasing comb and hair spray.

Sweeney Todd Character

Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd

Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd is the main character of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. He first appeared in a Victorian penny dreadful serial, but his fame comes from the Stephen Sondheim musical, which was then adapted into a movie by Tim Burton. Throughout each iteration, his role remains the same: a psychopathic barber who murders his customers. Subsequently, Mrs. Lovett bakes the bodies of his victims into meat pies for her shop. He takes on the alias of Sweeney Todd to abandon the identity of Benjamin Barker, who had been falsely convicted and banished, to now take revenge on those who wronged him. He especially wants vengeance against Judge Turpin for kidnapping his daughter. This costume takes inspiration from the Tim Burton movie, where Johnny Depp stars as the title role.

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