Ahead, take a look back at the craziest, weirdest and wildest looks to ever grace the museum’s hallowed steps.
Nobody does a “naked dress” like the Goddess of Pop — or Bob Mackie, who dressed her in this barely-there frock dripping with feathers.
You don’t see many T-shirts at the Met Gala, but these DIY tops — customized from a three-pack of Hanes tanks on the morning of the fancy fête, as McCartney told Vogue — were perfect picks for the “Rock Style”-themed event. Plus, they don’t lie: McCartney’s the daughter of Beatles frontman Paul McCartney, while Tyler’s father is Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler.
Who else but the Queen Bee would dare to wear a Barbie-pink bikini to the ball? Her fabulous Versace ensemble also included matching python boots and a floor-length fur coat.
Nobody took 2004’s “Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century” theme more seriously than the supermodel, who showed up in full Marie Antoinette cosplay, courtesy of John Galliano.
“Looking back on it, I think it’s so badass that I went for it, because it was at a time when people were just starting to get into the theme,” Valletta told W. “That was a cool moment to be pushing the envelope.”
At the “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty”-themed ball, the late designer’s close friend honored his fashion house in the sculptural, spectacular feathered creation that closed McQueen’s spring 2011 show.
Years before Harry Styles graced the cover of Vogue in a gown, Jacobs made a statement about gender-fluid fashion in a sheer back lace dress of his own design — layered atop bright white boxer shorts, because why not?
Leave it to Kim K. to break the internet during her Met Gala debut. The then-pregnant reality star attended fashion’s biggest night for the first time as Kanye West’s plus-one, and wore a rose-printed Givenchy gown featuring built-in gloves that spawned countless memes.
“I was crying the whole way home because I just couldn’t believe it,” Kardashian later told Vogue of the tweets, which compared her couture to an old couch, Mrs. Doubtfire’s frumpy florals and more.
The Bad Gal was the belle of the ball in this bright yellow couture creation by Guo Pei, a great choice for the “China: Through the Looking Glass”-themed carpet. Featuring fur trim and a football field-sized train, the look inspired endless memes, but Rihanna’s said she was “so scared” to wear it.
“I felt like, ‘I’m doing too much.’ I was driving past the red carpet, and I was just seeing, like, gowns, and I was like, ‘Oh my god, I’m a clown. People are going to laugh at me. This is like, too much,'” she told “Access Hollywood.”
“I circled like, three times, I’m not even joking. And finally, I was like, ‘Whatever, let’s go. Let’s just go. Let’s just go.’ I know. I don’t regret it.'”
The “Halo” hitmaker similarly had fashion fans talking that night, leaving little to the imagination in this completely see-through bedazzled Givenchy number.
Beyoncé’s sister held her own in this dizzying circular Giles design. Call it optical illusion couture.
Showing skin is nothing new for the Queen of Pop, but who else would hit the Met Gala with their boobs and butt on full display?
“When it comes to women’s rights we are still in the dark ages,” Madonna wrote on Instagram of her Givenchy look, meant as a political statement. “The fact that people actually believe a woman is not allowed to express her sexuality and be adventurous past a certain age is proof that we still live in an ageist and sexist society.”
No pants, no problem! Comprised of a circuit board-inspired blazer, fishnets and her signature sky-high platforms, Gaga’s 2016 Met look was big on shock factor and small on fabric.
While the elder Jenner sister’s no stranger to a see-through style moment, this La Perla look — comprised of 85,000 crystals strung together by a single thread and complete with peekaboo thong — is a definite standout.
Coordinating with her BFF Jenner, the younger Hadid sis dazzled in a sheer Alexander Wang catsuit with a plunging back.
To co-host 2018’s Catholicism-themed gala, the pop star made like the pope in a pearl-encrusted minidress, robe and mitre designed by Maison Margiela Artisanal’s John Galliano. Fashion fans were thrilled, but religious purists weren’t so pleased.
Whether or not she’s in character as Carrie Bradshaw, SJP loves nothing more than a dramatic hat — and with its itty-bitty nativity scene, the towering headpiece she wore with her gilded Dolce & Gabbana gown will be hard to top.
How’s that for impressive wingspan? Perry showed up at 2018’s “Heavenly Bodies” ball in full angel cosplay by Versace. Her towering wings were so tall, she had to arrive at the function in a convertible and enter the museum sideways.
The “Euphoria” star channeled Joan of Arc in a stunning silver chainmail Versace look complete with armored details at the shoulders, chest and waist. Battle attire’s never looked so beautiful.
Nobody embodied camp quite like Mother Monster this year. After arriving on the carpet in a shocking pink Brandon Maxwell cape, Gaga performed a high-fashion striptease for photographers, revealing a bustled black gown and then a fuchsia column dress. At the end of it all, she was left in lingerie, fishnet stockings and skyscraper heels.
The Skims founder’s Met Gala styles always make headlines, but the wet-look Thierry Mugler design she wore atop an itty-bitty corset in 2019 proved her true commitment to fashion: It was so tight, she had to take breathing lessons before the big night, and couldn’t sit down the entire evening.
“I have never felt pain like that in my life,” Kardashian later said of the look.
The “Firework” singer’s never met a kitschy costume she didn’t love, and this chandelier-inspired Moschino getup quite literally lit up the red carpet. Once inside the museum, she cosplayed a cheeseburger in a second outrageous look.
“I always want to put a good show on,” Perry told Page Six Style of her over-the-top outfits, adding, “I take fashion risks all the time, but I never have any regrets.”
The singer, songwriter and actress proved she can quite literally wear many hats in 2019, when she showed up in this spectacular, surreal Christian Siriano look topped with a tower of chapeaux. The Picasso-inspired eye on her bodice even blinked as she made her way down the carpet.
How’s that for a dramatic entrance? The “Pose” actor was carried into the 2019 ball on a litter held aloft by six shirtless men. His outfit for the evening — a custom gilded catsuit by The Blonds that included 10-foot wings and a 24k-gold headpiece — was equally eye-catching.
A surprisingly covered-up look for Cardi, this scarlet Thom Browne show-stopper featured a 10-foot circular train, 30,000 feathers, matching beaded headpiece — and best of all, 44-carat ruby nipples worth $250,000.
Talk about turning heads! Clad in a scarlet Gucci gown, the Oscar winner accessorized with a creepy, ultra-realistic replica of his own noggin, just like the models at the band’s fall 2018 runway show.
For her Met Gala debut, the Democratic congresswoman sent a message with her Brother Vellies gown, which had “Tax the Rich” splashed across the back in big red letters — quite the choice for a night spent surrounded by fashion and society elite.
“We can never get too comfortable in our seats at the table once they’ve been given,” Aurora James, the brand’s founder and creative director, told Vogue. “We must always continue to push ourselves, push our colleagues, push the culture, and push the country forward.”
Haute anonymity! Proving she needn’t show her famous face to be instantly recognizable on a red carpet, Kardashian showed up in a masked Balenciaga getup that obscured her entire body from head to toe.
“There’s no logo, no face, but everyone knows it’s her,” a source told Page Six Style at the time. “Kanye [West] gave her the courage to push creativity and people’s imagination through art.
Hats off to the supermodel for working this wild Harris Reed look, topped off with a showgirl-worthy feathered headdress that couldn’t have been easy to fit through a car door.
The “Big Little Lies” beauty bared it (almost) all in this sheer bejeweled Saint Laurent creation layered atop a matching bra and thong. When trolls attacked her for the sexy style on social media, she responded, “Being uncomfortable with the human body is colonization / brainwashing. It’s just a body. We all got em.”
The “Genesis” singer didn’t need a bodyguard at the ball — because she brought along her own medieval-style sword, which was borrowed from the Met and made from a melted-down AR-15 assault rifle. She further accessorized her futuristic Iris van Herpen gown with a “Dune”-inspired metal face mask and matching elf ears.
The reality superstar stole the show once again by borrowing Marilyn Monroe’s “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” gown for the 2022 carpet.
The look swiftly sparked backlash, with some upset that Kardashian lost 16 pounds in just a few weeks to fit into the historic piece (which couldn’t be altered) and others alleging she damaged it during her night out.
Both Kardashian — who changed into a replica of the gown immediately after ascending the Met steps — and Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, which loaned her the look, denied it was harmed.
Fully embracing the evening’s “gilded glamour” theme, the supermodel quite literally went for the gold in Dior Haute Couture, walking the red carpet topless and covered in metallic body paint.
No, that’s not Jared Leto — but if this Swedish street style star’s over-the-top Iris Van Herpen outfit wasn’t enough to land him a spot on this list, his uncanny resemblance to the Oscar-winning actor sealed the deal.
The “Say So” singer went fully feline for 2023’s Karl Lagerfeld-themed fête, channeling the late designer’s beloved pet, Choupette, with her custom Oscar de la Renta look. Embellished animal ears and a prosthetic cat nose finished off this “Freaky Deaky” fashion moment.
Doja wasn’t the only star who cosplayed a cat that year; Leto similarly took cues from Choupette for his red carpet look. (The real Choupette gave both ensembles rave reviews.)
You didn’t think we’d leave the fashionably fearless “Old Town Road” rapper off this list, did you? Lil Nas X got dipped in silver body paint and covered in thousands of crystals for the 2023 ball, a process that took makeup maestro Pat McGrath and her team nine whole hours.
For Monáe, walking the red carpet at fashion’s biggest night might as well be a day at the beach. After arriving at the museum in a black-and-white tweed coat layered atop a dramatic hoop skirt, the “Lipstick Lover” singer whipped off their outerwear to reveal a sequined bikini.
The South African songstress made her Met Gala debut as a walking sand sculpture, nodding to 2024’s “garden of time” dress code with a Balmain gown inspired by (and accessorized with) an hourglass. While the custom creation wasn’t exactly easy to move around in, designer Olivier Rousteing chopped off the hem after the red carpet to make things easier.
The “Summertime Sadness” songstress made quite the dramatic entrance in this veiled Alexander McQueen look inspired by the late designer’s iconic fall 2006 “Widows of Culloden” collection. We’re hoping she was careful while navigating the museum’s more narrow corridors; that headpiece could be a safety hazard!
Kim was back in more waist-cinching couture in 2024, opting for a Maison Margiela Artisanal by John Galliano look comprised of a metal mesh skirt and itty-bitty brocade girdle topped with a very polarizing, purposely pilled cardigan.
