12 Met Gala Entrances That Earned The Right To Be Called The Most Memorable Of All Time

They were each a real stunner alright and when it comes to The Met Gala, that's no easy task.

Liezel

• Published in Film & TV
• April 6, 2022

The Met Gala is the fashion equivalent of the Oscars. It's like the Super Bowl of fashion.

It all started in 1946 and after a few decades, it has become one of the grandest events of the year where everyone who is anyone from designers, models, Hollywood stars, and some of the richest people in the world convene at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the annual fundraising gala celebrating the Costume Institute's new exhibition on a changing theme.

There is just nothing quite like it and plenty of people, not just the attendees, look forward to it every year. A major reason for that is fashion.

The Met Gala changes themes every year for the dress code and the attendees have always been eager to put together a look that doesn't only conform to the theme but are real stunners on the red carpet. And, of course, why wouldn't they?

It's the Met Gala. You have to make an entrance.

From chandelier dresses to being carried into the gala in Ancient Egyptian style, Met Gala attendees have never failed to amaze and surprise audiences who have been looking forward to the magnificent fashion of the event. Here are some of the best Met Gala Entrances over the years.

1. Jared Leto

Jared Leto really turned heads including his own (or at least a synthetic version of it) in his 2019 Gucci look for the gala's "Camp: Notes on Fashion" theme.

2. Kacey Musgraves

Kacey Musgraves pulled out all the stops to become a Barbie girl living in a Barbie world for the 2019 Met Gala. Not only was she rocking the signature Barbie all-pink look with her pink Moschino number but she also paired it with a hairdryer purse and a matching convertible.

3. Katy Perry

For the 2018 theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination," Katy Perry literally looked like she just descended from the heaves wearing a gold Versace dress and giant angel wings. The wings were so large that she had to ride her vintage convertible with the top down.

4. Blake Lively

Blake Lively was a literal goddess walking among mortals in her magnificent ensemble for the 2018 Met Gala.

According to Vogue, the beaded bodice of her gown took more than 600 hours to embroider. Her dress was also so big that she had to take a party bus to get to the event.

5. Katy Perry

Katy Perry lit up the 2019 Met Gala like a firework with her electrifying Moschino chandelier piece. And yes, the bulbs really were working.

6. Cardi B

For the 2019 Met Gala, Cardi B turned heads with her red Thom Browne gown. According to Vogue, the dress took more than 2000 hours to create and featured 30 000 feathers.

The look also included 44-carat ruby nipple covers. They cost a whopping $250 000 apiece.

7. Cher

Before the Kardashians made sheer dresses a thing, Cher was one of the first to shock the world with it at the 1974 ball with her Bob Mackie piece. The theme that year was "Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design."

"It looks like your skin's beaded," Cher told Vogue in a 2019 video. "So I think people were a little taken back."

8. Rihanna

Rihanna was a co-chair of the 2018 Met Gala together with Amal Clooney and Donatella Versace and she arrived looking the part with a coat from Maison Margiela and a bishop's hat by Stephen Jones. The ensemble really is one of the most iconic.

As she told Vogue about the hand-beaded look, "It would be a sin not to wear it."

9. Billy Porter

Billy Porter really made heads bow or more correctly look up to him like he was a king when he was carried into the 2019 Met Gala by six shirtless men Ancient Egypt style with his ensemble by The Blonds.

"This is going to be fierce y'all," he told Vogue before the big event. "I'm getting carried in by a bunch of hunky men. What better?....I never imagined I'd be able to live my Cleopatra dreams out."

There's more though. To complete his look like a sun god, he also spread his wings before walking across the red carpet.

10. Zendaya

Zendaya was a fairytale princess who came to life in her gorgeous Cinderella dress for the 2019 Met Gala.

Her stylist Law Roach was also dressed in an ensemble inspired by the fairy godmother and when he joined the actress on the red carpet, he waved his magic wand and Zendaya's Tommy Hilfiger dress lit up like magic.

11. Rihanna

Honestly, almost every ensemble that Rihanna wears to the Met Gala becomes iconic. Who can forget this yellow ensemble for the 2015 Met Gala?

The theme that year was "China: Through the Looking Glass" and although this piece became one of the most memorable, Rihanna did get pre-show jitters because of it.

"I remember being so scared to get out of that car because I felt like, ‘I'm doing too much,'" she recalled to the outlet. "I was driving past the red carpet, and I was just seeing, like, gowns, and I was like, 'Oh my god, like, I'm a clown. People are going to laugh at me. This is, like, too much.' I thought that. I circled, like, three times, I'm not even joking. And finally, I was like, ‘Whatever, let's go. Let's just go....' I don't regret it.'

12. Lady Gaga

For the 2019 Met Gala look, Lady Gaga put on a whole show for the red carpet with not just one but four whole outfits.

In an interview with Glamour, designer Brandon Maxwell said it took 700 hours of handwork to create the look. "I don't think I could have done this moment with anyone else but her," he added.

We got to say, these looks are really going down in history as some of the most glamorous and magnificent fashion moments of any event. There are only a few that could stand on par with them.

You also have to consider the artists who made them work. The looks seem like it was really made for them and we really couldn't imagine anyone else wearing them.

What was your favorite look?

Liezel