The biggest stars are ready to strike their best poses on the steps of the Met for fashion\u2019s biggest night.<\/p>\n
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The 2026 Met Gala is here \u2014 which means it\u2019s time for daring looks, possible baby bump debuts and some meme-worthy moments<\/a>.<\/p>\n Follow live coverage<\/a><\/p>\n Here\u2019s everything you need to know about this year\u2019s affair.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s theme: \u2018Costume Art\u2019 <\/p>\n Since 1948, the gala has raised money to fund the operations and exhibitions of the Metropolitan Museum of Art\u2019s Costume Institute. Last year, the event brought in a record $31 million, The New York Times reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n The event is traditionally held on the first Monday in May and is considered to be the highest-profile fashion event of the year. <\/p>\n The theme is derived from the institute\u2019s spring 2026 exhibition, \u201cCostume Art.\u201d Max Hollein, CEO and director of the Met, told The Associated Press last year <\/a>that the goal of the exhibit is to take visitors on a journey through art history, where they will see connections throughout.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a show that can really live in fascinating ways at the museum and can pull from all different areas of our collection \u2014 paintings, sculpture, drawings,\u201d Hollein told the publication.<\/p>\n The show is \u201corganized thematically by different body types,\u201d Andrew Bolton, the Costume Institute\u2019s curator in charge, told the AP. Some of the sections include: the \u201cNaked Body,\u201d the \u201cClassical Body,\u201d the \u201cPregnant Body\u201d and the \u201cAging Body.\u201d<\/p>\n The Met Gala dress code is \u201cFashion Is Art,\u201d<\/a> with guests being asked to \u201ccelebrate the countless depictions of the dressed body throughout art history,\u201d the museum said.<\/p>\n Beyonc\u00e9 to make her long-awaited gala return<\/p>\n The Beyhive is buzzing over news of musician Beyonc\u00e9 Knowles-Carter\u2019s return to the Met Gala for the first time in a decade. <\/p>\n The superstar has attended the event seven times, wearing Givenchy to five of those carpets. Though she made her Met Gala debut in 2008, most will likely remember her appearance in 2014<\/a>, when footage of an elevator fight between her husband, Jay-Z, and sister Solange was leaked to TMZ.<\/p>\n This year, Bey serves as a co-host, alongside actor Nicole Kidman, tennis star Venus Williams and magazine executive Anna Wintour, who has long spearheaded the event. <\/p>\n Kidman, who chaired the gala in 2003 and 2005, has made six appearances at the gala in total.<\/p>\n This will be Williams’ first time serving as chair. She has been involved in fashion on and off the court through her career as a tennis player, including launching her own label. <\/p>\n This year also marks the first Met Gala since Wintour stepped down as Vogue\u2019s editor-in-chief<\/a>, instead focusing on her two other titles: Cond\u00e9 Nast\u2019s chief content officer and Vogue\u2019s global editorial director. Chloe Malle was tapped as the new head of editorial for American Vogue<\/a> last fall. <\/p>\n Rumored guest list features A-list stars <\/p>\n Tickets for this year\u2019s event started at $100,000 a seat, and $350,000<\/a> for a table of 10, according to the AP. <\/p>\n But Wintour, as always, has full control over the guest list and must approve of each attendee. <\/p>\n In addition to Wintour\u2019s co-hosts, there\u2019s a Met Gala host committee, which is chaired by Saint Laurent designer Anthony Vaccarello and actor Zo\u00eb Kravitz. <\/p>\n It’s unclear whether Kravitz\u2019s rumored fianc\u00e9, Harry Styles<\/a>, will accompany her to the affair, but eagle-eyed fans will be looking out for an engagement ring.<\/p>\n Other members of the committee who are expected to attend include pop star Sabrina Carpenter, writer Lena Dunham, singer Sam Smith and WNBA star A\u2019ja Wilson.<\/p>\n Onlookers can also expect to see frequent Met Gala guests, such as members of the Kardashian-Jenner family, and fashion icons, like Sarah Jessica Parker, on the Met steps. <\/p>\n While New York City\u2019s sitting mayor is often a guest at the event, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his wife, Rama Duwaji, will be skipping the affair this year. When asked about the gala by the publication Hell Gate<\/a>, Mamdani said that he is focusing on affordability issues in the city.<\/p>\n Bezos\u2019 involvement in gala stirs controversy<\/p>\n Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren S\u00e1nchez Bezos, are the evening\u2019s honorary co-chairs, a decision that has prompted some New Yorkers to call for a boycott<\/a> of the star-studded affair.<\/p>\n In a \u201cTODAY\u201d interview in March, S\u00e1nchez Bezos said that Wintour approached the couple<\/a> to sponsor the exhibition this year. The tech billionaire\u2019s wife was featured on the Vogue cover after their June 2025 wedding<\/a>.<\/p>\n An anti-billionaire group called Everyone Hates Elon has been putting up ads<\/a> around New York City accusing Bezos of things like \u201cenabling ICE,\u201d \u201cavoiding tax\u201d and \u201cexploiting workers.\u201d <\/p>\n Vogue\u2019s livestream kicks off at 6 p.m. ET<\/p>\n The red carpet arrivals typically begin around 5 p.m. ET and end around 8 p.m. Most red carpet livestreams, including Vogue\u2019s, will begin at 6 p.m.<\/p>\n Some of the most well-known guests tend to show up on the later side. Last year, for example, Rihanna made a fashionably late appearance on the carpet, hours after her partner, A$AP Rocky, confirmed the news that she was pregnant<\/a>.<\/p>\n The official Met Gala livestream will be featured across Vogue\u2019s website and YouTube<\/a> and TikTok pages<\/a>. Influencer Emma Chamberlain, actor Cara Delevingne, model Ashley Graham and TV personality La La Anthony serve as Vogue\u2019s official red carpet hosts.<\/p>\n Additionally, E! is livestreaming departures from The Mark, The Carlyle and The Pierre \u2014 three hotels where celebrities tend to get ready with their stylists. <\/p>\n And, of course, NBC News will be live-blogging the event all evening.<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1746502700679_f_mo_rihanna_met_gala_250505_1920x1080-3beiw5.jpg\")
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