2026 Met Gala: Beyoncé and Rihanna walk the red carpet

Summary

Beyoncé tells the BBC it feels great to be back at fashion's biggest night alongside her daughter and husband at the Met Gala in New York
It's the singer's first appearance at the gala in a decade, where she is co-chair alongside Venus Williams, Nicole Kidman and Anna Wintour
Meanwhile, pop star Sabrina Carpenter tells the BBC's Nada Tawfik that her dress is made from strips of film from the Audrey Hepburn classic Sabrina
Anne Hathaway and some of The Devil Wears Prada 2 cast get huge cheers from onlookers as they arrive
Heidi Klum's ultra-realistic statue outfit draws looks on the carpet, and Rihanna arrives just as it looked like things were finished
The dress code for this year's fundraiser is "Fashion is Art", celebrating the Metropolitan Museum of Art's spring costume exhibition
The gala is not without controversy, with activists protesting billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's involvement as a sponsor

Live Reporting

Edited by Brandon Livesay and Oliver O'Connell, with Nada Tawfik and Pratiksha Ghildial at the Met Gala

Kylie Jenner in a dress undressing itselfpublished at 00:25 BST 5 May
Scarlett Harris
Fashion critic

Youngest member of the Kardashian family, Kylie Jenner has made her body a work of art, so it’s only fitting that she would reference that in one of her favourite labels, Schiaparelli.
Her dress, which appears as if it is undressing itself, draws attention to her breasts, which she made headlines for last year when she revealed the details of her augmentation in a TikTok comment.
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Kylie Jenner
Angela Bassett says fashion is integral in getting into characterpublished at 00:21 BST 5 May
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from the Met Gala

I caught a quick word with the actor Angela Bassett.
She wore a vibrant pink gown designed by Prabal Gurung with matching bright pink makeup that was, like others, inspired by a painting she loves.
She told me that fashion is integral to getting into character and transforms everything from how you move and speak to how you feel.
Image source, Getty Images

Heidi Klum's chiselled featurespublished at 00:18 BST 5 May

Image source, Getty Images
Heidi Klum is famous for her wild and elaborate Halloween costumes.
And she seems to have taken a page from her own book for the Met Gala.
Her statue-esque fit looks like it has been cut from a block of marble.
Coleman Domingo is serving looks as alwayspublished at 00:16 BST 5 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Actor Coleman Domingo is something of a fashion icon, having co-chaired the Met Gala last year

Model and activist Lauren Wasser in gold from head to toepublished at 00:12 BST 5 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Wasser became a body positive activist after losing both of her legs to toxic shock syndrome. Tonight she sports gold prosthetics.
Image source, Getty Images
Athletes trade sweats for gownspublished at 00:10 BST 5 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Olympic gold medal-winning figure skater Alysa Liu
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
WNBA player Angel Reese wears a long, pink gown
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Olympic ski racer Lindsey Vonn, who fractured her leg during this year's Winter Olympics
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Serena Williams
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Steph Curry and his wife Ayesha Curry

Portraitist references her own work in Met Gala outfitpublished at 00:07 BST 5 May
Scarlett Harris
Fashion critic

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Amy Sherald
Renowned portraitist Amy Sherald, who notably painted former First Lady Michelle Obama’s official portrait, made headlines last year when she withdrew her solo show from the Smithsonian after she was requested to remove a painting of a trans non-binary depiction of the Statue of Liberty lest they court the attention of the Trump administration’s “crusade against trans identity,” as she called it.
With controversy around the Met Gala and the precarity of art and museums reaching fever pitch this year, it makes sense that Sherald would reference her own work, “Miss Everything (Unsuppressed Deliverance)” from 2014, for the carpet’s theme of Fashion is Art.
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
A file photo of Amy Sherald and her painting
More arrivals take to the red carpetpublished at 00:02 BST 5 May

The red carpet is really in full flow now, here's a few more looks that caught our attention.
Image source, Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
Image caption,
EJAE and Giovanna Engelbert attend the 2026 Met Gala
Image source, Variety via Getty Images
Image caption,
Camila Mendes at the gala
Image source, WireImage
Image caption,
Irina Shayk bares it all

Model Gigi Hadid arrives in sheer Miu Miupublished at 23:58 BST 4 May
Scarlett Harris
Fashion critic

Image source, Getty Images
For her 11th Met Gala, Gigi Hadid posted on Instagram that she’d be wearing Miu Miu.
She arrived on the carpet in a wan grey sequined sheath with petal details reminiscent of Schiaparelli’s tear dress, which is on display in the Costume Art exhibition.
Blackpink walk the stepspublished at 23:54 BST 4 May

Two of the four members of ultra-famous Kpop girl group Blackpink are in the building.
Lisa tells Vogue the arms of her dress are molds of her actual arms.
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Blackpink singer and actress Lisa
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Blackpink singer Rosé

Tricked out in techpublished at 23:51 BST 4 May

Image source, Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
Image caption,
Janelle Monáe's outfit is covered in cables and circuit boards
Singer and actor Janelle Monáe is covered in bits of technology. Her collar is made up of cables, and there's circuit boards and pieces of computer woven in to her top.
Image source, Getty Images
Stars of Latin pop make the Met their stagepublished at 23:48 BST 4 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Colombian rapper Maluma
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Puerto Rican singer Rauw Alejandro

One of the more unusual looks tonightpublished at 23:44 BST 4 May
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from the Met Gala

Theatre producer Jordan Roth stopped for a chat with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, who exclaimed, “That’s awesome,” when she saw his costume.
Roth said it’s inspired by his favourite painting in the Met, “Pygmalion and Galatea.” It’s definitely been one of the most unique looks we’ve seen tonight that is a playful interpretation of the theme.
The British designer Robert Wun designed Roth's mannequin get-up, as well as a wide range of looks for the likes of Naomi Osaka, Blackpink’s Lisa, Nichapat Suphap and Gustav Magnar Witzoe.
Image source, Getty
Image caption,
Theatrical producer Jordan Roth on the red carpet
Image source, Nada Tawfik/BBC
Zoe Kravitz... are you engaged or not?published at 23:42 BST 4 May

Rumours are currently swirling that actress and model Zoe Kravitz is engaged to singer Harry Styles.
She's been seen walking around New York City with a large diamond on her ring finger.
But tonight she appears to be keeping that info to herself. Her left hand has stayed firmly tucked in the pocket of her dress in nearly every photo we've seen of her on the red carpet.
Image source, Getty Images

More actors pose for the cameraspublished at 23:40 BST 4 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Actress Amanda Seyfried, who recently starred in The Housemaid, is pretty in pink
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Welsh actor Luke Evans, currently starring as Dr Frankenfurter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Broadway, came dressed head to tow in leather
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Actress Sarah Pidgeon, who recently portrayed Caroline Bessette in TV's Love Story, wears a bright yellow gown
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
...and here's her on-screen husband, Paul Anthony Kelly who plays John F Kennedy Jr
Venus Williams recognises beauty in diverse bodiespublished at 23:37 BST 4 May
Scarlett Harris
Fashion critic

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Venus Williams in custom Swarovski
Gala co-chair Venus Williams is no stranger to serving looks on the tennis court, alongside her fashionable sister Serena.
Williams is also no stranger to having her body critiqued, so she felt the theme of the exhibition, Costume Art, which is revolutionary for its inclusion of diverse mannequins modeled after real people, is “a perfect fit for me", she told Vogue.
Featured in the exhibition - and present on the red carpet - are Sinéad Burke, a disability activist who was born with dwarfism; Aimee Mullins, an athlete and actress who wears prosthetic lower legs; and Aariana Rose Philip, a musician and model who uses a wheelchair; as well as pregnant forms, all of which will be repurposed for use in other exhibitions when Costume Art closes in January 2027.
“It’s even more important today because people feel so much pressure to look a certain way. Though there’s so much beauty in difference,” Williams told Vogue.
Tonight she’s wearing custom Swarovski.
Image source, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Image caption,
A look into "The Pregnant Body" portion of the Costume Art exhibition

The unmasked singerpublished at 23:35 BST 4 May

Katy Perry has removed her space-like mask to reveal that it is in fact her.
Perhaps as tribute to her trip to space on Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket.
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
South Asian fashion hits the red carpetpublished at 23:30 BST 4 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Isha Ambani, daughter of billionaire Mukesh Ambani
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Indian businesswoman Sudha Reddy
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Fashion designer Manish Malhotra

Katy Perry makes an unexpected appearancepublished at 23:29 BST 4 May

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Katy Perry
Katy Perry's name was not on the list of attendees for tonight's gala.
But here she is anyway... and her face is completely covered in a mask reminiscent of a space suit.
Where is Beyoncé?published at 23:27 BST 4 May
Scarlett Harris
Fashion critic

This year’s Met Gala marks ten years since Queen Bey last graced the ball with her presence, in a custom peach latex Givenchy gown embellished with “confetti teeth,” no doubt a reference from her just-released groundbreaking visual album, Lemonade.
Bey doesn’t do things in half measures, so of course she’s also a member of the host committee, alongside Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams and Vogue editor Anna Wintour.
As anxious as the Bey Hive is to see what she’s wearing, pundits are also awaiting the announcement of Part III of Beyoncé’s Renaissance project, which many believe will be a rock album.
Should we be looking for clues in her outfit like 10 years ago? Beyoncé’s publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, outright denies this theory, calling it “unequivocally false!!” Exclamation points hers.