The first Monday in May belongs to fashion. And tonight, the Metropolitan Museum of Art belonged to all of it.
The 2026 Met Gala is underway at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, raising a record $42 million for the museum’s Costume Institute — up from last year’s record of $31 million. The evening’s theme is “Costume Art,” with a dress code of “Fashion Is Art,” inviting guests to celebrate what the museum calls “the countless depictions of the dressed body throughout art history.”
It is, by any measure, fashion’s most theatrical night of the year. And 2026 is delivering.
The Power at the Top of the Steps
Tonight’s co-chairs are Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour — with this marking Wintour’s first gala since stepping down as Vogue’s editor-in-chief after decades helming both the publication and the event.
Beyoncé is returning to the Met Gala for the first time in a decade, having attended seven times previously. Her return as co-chair has sent anticipation into overdrive — the Beyhive has been buzzing for weeks, with some fans speculating her appearance could come with a hint at Act III of her ongoing album trilogy. Her publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, denied a forthcoming album announcement in late April, but in the world of Beyoncé, nothing is ever fully off the table.
Venus Williams, making her debut as co-chair, wore a Swarovski crystal black gown with an intricately designed necklace stretching from neck to chest — the look inspired by Robert Pruitt’s 2022 painting “Venus Williams, Double Portrait,” which hangs in the National Portrait Gallery. The necklace she wore on the carpet tonight mirrors the one depicted in that painting. Williams told Variety it was “really intimidating” to meet with Wintour about her look, and said the best part of the night was “being in company with Beyoncé and Anna.”
Nicole Kidman arrived as co-chair in Chanel alongside her daughter Sunday Rose Kidman Urban in Dior — a mother-daughter fashion moment that immediately trended online. Anna Wintour followed in a feathered Chanel cape, a look nearly identical to one she wore at the 2019 gala in pink.
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos serve as honorary co-chairs and lead sponsors — a choice that has drawn protests from New Yorkers who organized demonstrations around the city ahead of the event.
The Looks That Stopped the Green Carpet
The museum dressed the event in a garden-like setting with romantic hanging florals, barriers of green hedges, pots of lavender, and a carpet resembling mossy bricks — giving the arrivals a backdrop reminiscent of Monet. Against that backdrop, the fashion ranged from surreal to sculptural to deeply personal.
Janelle Monáe arrived in custom Christian Siriano featuring interwoven electrical wires, Ethernet cables, a computer motherboard, animatronic butterflies, and live moss. In an Instagram post, Monáe cited an alter ego from one of her albums, writing: “And Cindi whispered from the future — remember what made you human.” She thanked “the artisans and hands that built every fiber” of her look.
Katy Perry arrived in a white bridal gown with matching gloves — and a mirrored mask concealing her face entirely. It is her first Met Gala since 2022, when she wore Oscar de la Renta. In 2024, she was absent from the carpet while AI-generated images of her in extravagant gowns circulated widely on social media, fooling thousands of fans including her own mother.
Lauren Sánchez Bezos wore Schiaparelli in a dark navy gown designed as a direct homage to John Singer Sargent’s painting “Madame X,” which hangs in the Met itself.
Sam Smith arrived in a sparkly black winged outfit with a feather headpiece, crafted by their partner of two years, designer Christian Cowan. Cowan confirmed to Entertainment Tonight that the look weighed 52 pounds. Smith’s response: “I’m strong.”
Doja Cat took a more restrained approach in a draped Saint Laurent gown, telling Vogue she was inspired by her own skin tone. Charli XCX also wore Saint Laurent, with a single floral stem motif. Cara Delevingne arrived in a high-neck velvet Ralph Lauren column dress featuring 10,000 hand-embroidered crystals and cascading feathers down the back.
Beyond the Red Carpet
The 2026 host committee is led by Saint Laurent designer Anthony Vaccarello and actress Zoë Kravitz, with members including Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Gwendoline Christie, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, and BLACKPINK’s Lisa. Red carpet hosts for Vogue’s livestream are Emma Chamberlain in custom Mugler, Cara Delevingne, Ashley Graham, and La La Anthony.
The evening also made history in accessibility. For the first time, the Costume Institute exhibition features mannequins based on the bodies of people with physical disabilities. Irish actress and activist Sinéad Burke — whose accessibility consultancy Tilting the Lens worked with the Met Gala team — is not only on the host committee but represented in the exhibition itself. Burke told Vogue’s livestream: “In thinking about the Met Gala, it is a symbol of the steps, which for so many with disabilities is a symbol of inaccessibility.”
Tony Award-nominated Broadway star Joshua Henry opened the red carpet arrivals with a live choreographed performance of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” on the museum steps — a rare and celebrated moment of live performance on the carpet itself.
The full livestream is available on Vogue’s website, YouTube, and TikTok. Fashion’s biggest night is still unfolding. The best, as always, may be yet to come.
