The Met Gala 2026 looks that broke the internet (and the group chat)

Thelma Padberg Technology 05 May, 2026 Americas

The Met Gala 2026 embraced the "Fashion Is Art" dress code, and these standout celebrity looks sparked the biggest reactions online.

a composite of some of best Met Gala red carpet looks at the 2026 celebrity gala

The Met Gala has always been fashion’s biggest stage, but in 2026, it might also be its most online.

This year's dress code, "Fashion Is Art," tied to the museum's new Costume Institute exhibition opening May 10, set the tone for a night where the line between garment and gallery piece all but disappeared. Think painterly gowns, sculptural silhouettes, and references that felt pulled straight from museum walls. Sometimes reverent, sometimes a little chaotic.

As is customary in 2026, within moments of each arrival, looks were dissected, memed, and debated across social media. This is the night where couture becomes conversation; where a single outfit can spark a thousand hot takes; and where the group chat verdict ("wait… I kind of love it?") matters just as much as the designer tag.

Because let's be honest, the most memorable looks aren't always the "best" in the traditional sense. They're the ones that make you pause mid-scroll. The ones that prompt a double take, a screenshot, a frantic voice note. The "WTH is she wearing??" of it all, delivered with just enough conviction to turn confusion into intrigue.

From optical illusions to high-drama art references and full-on character work, this year's standouts leaned all the way in. These are the looks that owned the timeline.

Hudson Williams

Credit: Michael Buckner/Penske Media via Getty Images

Fresh off his appointment as a face of Balenciaga, Heated Rivalry star Hudson Williams arrived in a baby blue two-piece that flirted with theatricality — part matador, part modern-day provocateur. The jacket hung open to reveal a bare chest layered in diamond jewelry, while a sweeping black cape added just enough drama.

While some nitpicked the tailoring, the look was a hit with fans, with the actor's updates account mooning over it on main: "Will never get over him..."

It also didn't take long for fans to post side-by-sides of Williams and his Heated Rivalry co-star Connor Storrie, who also attended the star-studded function.

Williams leaned all the way into the look with bold winged eyeliner and washes of blue and red shadow, a nod to Black Swan that sharpened the ensemble's sense of performance.

Chase Infiniti

Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Hollywood ingenue Chase Infiniti delivered one of the night's most intricate illusions in a custom Thom Browne gown. The trompe-l’œil design referenced the Venus de Milo, transforming classical sculpture into something fluid and red-carpet–ready. Embroidered with more than 1.5 million sequins, the dress shimmered with every step.

Some of the words online spectators used to describe the look are "stunning" and "gorgeous" (correct!).

The dress is less a garment than a feat of craftsmanship, and a quietly commanding debut on fashion's biggest stage.

Jisoo from BLACKPINK

K-pop star Jisoo onthe red carpet at the 2026 Met Gala

Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

For her Met Gala debut, Jisoo didn't just show up; she crystallized a moment. Joining bandmates Jennie, Lisa, and Rosé on the carpet, Jisoo stood out in a custom Dior gown by Jonathan Anderson that looked like an Impressionist painting brought to life. One creator on X complimented the look as a "lovely Met debut."

Washed in soft pinks and lavender with delicate floral detailing, the dress evoked the dreamlike quality of Claude Monet's work: romantic, atmospheric, and unmistakably her. A longtime Dior ambassador, Jisoo's look felt both like a continuation and a coronation.

Inside the Met, the K-pop star linked up with her BLACKPINK bandmates to take a few pics that effectively shut down the internet.

Lisa from BLACKPINK

Lisa on the carpet at the 2026 Met Gala.

Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

As a member of the 2026 Met Gala host committee, Lisa didn't just embrace the night's dress code — she practically engineered it. Wearing a custom Robert Wun look, the BLACKPINK rapper and actress delivered one of the most avant-garde moments on the carpet: a sculptural gown featuring multiple 3D-printed arms extending outward to hold up her sheer veil.

The detail that sent social media into overdrive? The arms were modeled after Lisa's own. Created using 3D scans of her body, the piece blurred the line between fashion and self-portrait, with the arrangement subtly referencing traditional Thai dance positions. It's a continuation of Wun's fascination with the body as form, but here, it felt deeply personal, equal parts surreal and technical.

Hunter Schafer

Credit: Michael Buckner/Penske Media via Getty Images

In 1912, Gustav Klimt, most famously known for "The Kiss," painted a 9-year-old girl, Mäda Primavesi. She was the only child who ever sat for the portraitist. A century later, the girl's knee-length dress and staunch pose would make it all the way to the Met Gala, in the form of a jaw-dropping Prada gown worn by actor and model Hunter Schafer.

Schafer's look, complete with the girl's hair bow and floral appliques, had the internet enthralled. A princess, they called her, a white swan. Or maybe just a young girl's dream-come-true.

Luke Evans

Credit: Theo Wargo/FilmMagic via Getty Images

Luke Evans is currently strutting across New York City's Studio 54 as queer icon and alien Frankenfurter. But rather than donning his signature platformed Transylvanian look on the Met Gala red carpet, Evans' look was an homage to artistic icon Tom of Finland, the creative mind behind a genre of stylized homoerotic art that became a signature cultural reference for the LGBTQ+ community in the late 20th century.

What better way to honor the queer joy and radical acceptance of Rocky Horror Show — and the dress code "fashion is art" — than with a Palomo Spain head-to-toe leather daddy outfit?

Kylie Jenner

Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images

Like it or not, the Kardashian-Jenners run the Met Gala. Every year, the public awaits their looks — often controversial, often strikingly not on theme — and this year was no exception. So when Kylie Jenner, notably solo, showed up on 5th Ave, jaws dropped. Jenner was sporting custom Schiaparelli, designed to mimic the semi-nude form of the famous "Venus de Milo" statue, otherwise known as Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, and a callback to a famous Schiaparelli portrait taken by Man Ray.

While many onlookers appreciated the layered ode to art, others couldn't help but ask: Is this thinly veiled promo for Skims' nipple bra?

Sabrina Carpenter

Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue

There was double Sabrina last night as the singer wore a dress inspired by the 1954 Audrey Hepburn film Sabrina, Vogue reported. The gown was a custom Dior made of tulle and actual bedazzled film strips, and according to Vogue, if you zoom in, you could see Sabrina stars Humphrey Bogart and William Holden.

The "House Tour" singer was praised for the film references, and also harkened back to film and TV references in her recent Coachella set. Carpenter

"Oh, Sabrina Carpenter does not miss!! i love a fellow cinephile [sic]," commented X user @nvrfeltsoglum:

"Old Hollywood glamour with a film strip dress. Sabrina Carpenter is taking it," another user, @stylesgala, praised:

A fan account for Carpenter, @scarpenterfiles, couldn't help but stan, calling the look one of the best of the night:

Others, however, have reached Carpenter saturation. Following the red carpet, she sang some of her top songs and dueted "Landslide" with the legend Stevie Nicks, prompting @mi5termacabre to say, "I don’t know a single artist who has been forced on us more than Sabrina Carpenter":

"Bye yall are fake gagging," said X user @sxlma888, "The dress looks like [a] badly wrapped christmas present [sic]."

Emma Chamberlain

Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images

YouTuber-turned-coffee entrepreneur Emma Chamberlain arrived at the Met Gala looking like a watercolor painting. Chamberlain wore a custom Mugler by Miguel Castro Freitas, according to Vogue, and squarely fit the dress code "Fashion is Art." The top of the dress looks like sweeping yellow brushstrokes around her torso, cascading to the multicolor, blue-dominant skirt. The sleeves were also unique, with long, thin fringe.

Some X users said Chamberlain understood the theme better than other attendees, with others even calling her the best-dressed.

One fan, @ambersviiolet, went viral for calling attention to the evolution of Chamberlain's Met Gala outfits through the years:

It wasn't all praise, though. The gatekeeping of the Met Gala continues, with X user @SHARPSFREAK asking if Chamberlain is "that important" to be wearing Mugler:

And X user @notpopbase also accused Chamberlain of copying Zendaya's 2024 look:

Bad Bunny

Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images

One of the most unique looks of last night's Met Gala was Bad Bunny's. While he's in the midst of his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour, Benito took to the red carpet last night in a sleek all-black suit, looking…considerably older.

Bad Bunny wore prosthetics to appear elderly, with white hair and sagging skin. The look is meant to harken to the Costume Institute's 2026 exhibition and the different body types explored within, particularly the aging body, according to Vogue. Makeup artist Mike Marino transformed Bad Bunny into a grandpa version of himself, complete with realistic age spots and wrinkles.

The monochromatic suit was adorned with a large pussy bow, which is a reference to designer Charles James's garment "Bustle," Vogue reported.

Some online commentators commended Bad Bunny on the look. Men's style blog @dieworkwear said it was, "Like an elegant version of Johnny Knoxville's gag in Jackass."

Fan account @wickshorror commented, "One thing Bad Bunny will always do is transform," contrasting last night's look with Bad Bunny in drag.

Not everyone was a fan of the bold choice, however. "Apparently, Bad Bunny thinks getting dressed up like a 75-year-old [sic] is edgy. He's such a clown," X user Vince Langman posted.

Another user, @jackunheard, put it more simply: "Wtf is this?"

#Technology #Americas

Thelma Padberg

Source: Mashable

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