This year’s Met Gala was definitely an interesting one.
At its core, the Vogue-organized gala is meant to be a fundraiser to help financially support the Metropolitan Museum of Art, particularly its Costume Institute. The institute’s spring exhibition this year is “Costume Art,” a theme that guides the designs of the world’s most influential designers and fashion houses when creating their outfits for the evening. Guests are expected (but not required!) to keep this theme in mind, along with the evening’s dress code, “Fashion is Art.”
While past galas have all sported their own forms of controversy, the 2026 Met Gala has especially been a point of contention over the months leading up to it. Jeffrey and Lauren Sánchez Bezos’ involvement in the gala — they reportedly donated $10 million to serve as honorary chairs — has prompted critics to rebrand the evening as the “Tech Gala,” with many also condemning the presence of multiple tech companies at the event. Activist groups, such as Everyone Hates Elon, have also protested the gala to hold tech billionaires like the Bezos’s accountable.
With this year’s Met Gala still fresh in our minds, we’ve put together a list of some of the evening’s biggest moments. Here, in no particular order, are the winners and losers (and in the case of some strange choices, in-betweeners) of the 2026 Met Gala.
Winner: Statue Heidi Klum
We’ve never doubted Miss Klum and her love for an elaborate costume (for reference, see all of her Halloween fits). The Project Runway host strutted onto the Met Gala carpet as a living, breathing marble statue. Created by prosthetic makeup designer Mike Marino and his team at Prosthetic Renaissance, the outfit features thin layers of latex and spandex that mimic the folds of carved marble — perfect for Klum, who spent much of the evening posing for pictures with guests like Rihanna and A$AP Rocky.
Loser: BLACKPINK United… But At What Cost?
We rarely get all four of the members of BLACKPINK in one place, much less the Met Gala. But this year, Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa, and Rosé were in attendance as they each took a solo walk down the carpet. However, their outfits — despite coming straight from Chanel, Dior, Robert Wun, and Yves Saint Laurent, respectively — left… much to be desired. Their evening gowns seemed to cancel each other out, and it’s hard to see how they fit the gala’s theme. Better luck next time, BLACKPINK!
In-Betweener: Hands, Hands, Hands
There appeared to be several handsy mannequins on the carpet this time (with some handsier than others). Lisa’s custom gown from Robert Wun included a pair of arms draping a veil over the pop star, while Broadway’s Jordan Roth sported a second torso sprouting from his rump, also courtesy of Wun. The designer may just really love hands, because he also played a hand (Ha! Pun intended!) in making entrepreneur Nichapat Suphap’s gown of moving, automated hands. The hands started strong on the carpet, but lost some of their handiness (Alright, that’s enough!) towards the end.
Winner: Sabrina on Sabrina
How clever! In a nod to the Sabrinas that came before her, Sabrina Carpenter rolled up to the Met Gala in a Jonathan Anderson-designed Dior dress made mainly of rhinestoned film strips from the 1954 film, Sabrina. “My look for every year has been totally different,” the pop star told Vogue, referring to the three past times she was invited to the gala. Let’s see how Carpenter ups her game next year.
Loser: Lauren Sánchez Bezos as… Madame X
What was Mrs. Bezos trying to say with her Schiaparelli fit? That she, like John Singer Sargent’s Madame X, is the “innocent” center of unwarranted slander as the wife of Jeffrey Bezos? Well, regardless of whether or not this is a heavy-handed reference to the backlash she’s received since marrying the Amazon founder, Lauren did not serve. Beyond the Singer Sargent reference, the gown does little else with the gala’s theme and plays it much too safe for “fashion’s biggest night out.” Plus, Claire Foy did a lot better with the source material.
In-Betweener: Old Bad Bunny
Would I still tap old man Benito? Yes, of course, but I’m not quite sure why he pulled up to this year’s Met Gala. Although the rapper’s hyper-realistic makeup played with the “Aging Bodies” category of the Costume Institute’s exhibition, he seemed to be the only one who actually read the exhibition description. While I applaud that attention to detail (and his custom tuxedo from Zara), Bad Bunny seemed just a little bit out of place on the carpet.
Winner: A Beyoncé Sighting
The pop-R&B queen hasn’t been spotted at a Met Gala since 2016, and she’s made it a point to avoid the spotlight when she can. But this year, as one of the gala’s co-chairs, she pulled up with her family and ushered in what appears to be a new era for her (so long, Cowboy Carter). Beyoncé, Jay-Z, and Blue Ivy walked the carpet together, and the star couldn’t be prouder of her daughter. “It feels surreal, because my daughter is here,” she told Vogue, “I am excited to experience it through her eyes.”
Loser: Whatever Hudson Williams Was Going For
Hudson, what happened? The Heated Rivalry star made his first-ever appearance on the Met Gala runway, and I’m terrified that it may be his last. He made many a fashion faux pas this evening, from his custom-Balenciaga shirtless matador look to his questionable Black Swan-inspired makeup. The overall look was messy, and as much as I want to defend Williams, nothing about it tied back to the evening’s theme.
Loser: The Tech Bros Going Through the Back Door
Cowards! While everyone was distracted by the red carpet, Jeff Bezos and first-time attendee Mark Zuckerberg slipped into the actual gala through a private entrance. The evening also saw tables purchased by OpenAI, Meta, Snap, Shopify, and Amazon.
However, some tech bros did decide to brave the runway. Snapchat co-founder Evan Spiegel, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin all strutted their stuff, which only makes it more obvious that the Met Gala has become the Tech Gala.
Winner: Ball Without Billionaires
You can’t buy cool. Although this wasn’t part of the Met Gala’s programming, it was a joy to see labor unions from across the United States come together in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District to put on a completely different kind of fashion show. In protest of the Bezoses bankrolling the gala, the Ball Without Billionaires saw crowds of Amazon employees and former Washington Post staffers strut down a makeshift runway. Abbott Elementary’s Lisa Ann Walter emceed the event and sported a white jacket with the label, “Art Belongs to Everyone.”
