It’s Met Gala day 2023, (or fashion’s biggest night, if you’re in the US) and we can’t believe some of the looks coming down the red carpet to celebrate late Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld.
Hosted by Vogue, the gala has been serving some of the most beautiful and outlandish looks since 1948, and this year is no different. Having finally reached the ‘first Monday of May’, we bring you everything you need to know about who is walking up the Metropolitan Museum of Art steps, and what all the outfits mean.
Will we see a life-size Choupette come up the carpet? We will just have to wait and see.
Anna Wintour in Chanel SS 2023 Couture, with Bill Nighy
Dua Lipa in Chanel FW92 Couture with Tiffany jewellery. “This dress is a very special dress. It’s a 1992 fall bride dress, Chanel by Karl. It’s been on my moodboards forever. It’s a big come true for me,” Lipa explained on the Gala live stream. “The necklace is a very special Tiffany necklace that hasn’t been seen before.”
Emma Chamberlain in Miu Miu and Cartier jewelry
Penélope Cruz in Chanel Haute Couture, SS1988. The dress was remade from the archives for Cruz to wear at the Met Gala.
“I met Karl in 1999. I am probably one of the biggest fans of Chanel and Karl in this world. I know a lot about every collection he ever did,” she told the event live stream.
“We started to spend more time together [after becoming an ambassador] and became good friends and I loved him so much…everyone who knew him loved him.”
Rita Ora in Prabal Gurung, with husband Taika Waititi
Chloe Fineman in custom Wiederhoeft with a bag inspired by Lagerfeld’s cat Choupette. The dress was inspired by Chanel 2004 couture collection. She is wearing Bulgari jewellery.
Roger Federer and Mirka Federer
Phoebe Bridgers in Tory Burch
La La Anthony in Sergio Hudson. The dress was designed in honour of Karl, featuring a neutral colour palette and pearls.
Liu Wen in Tory Burch
Emily Ratajkowski in Tory Burch and Stuart Weitzman shoes
Nicole Kidman in Chanel and Keith Urban. This is the same dress that Nicole wore in a Chanel No. 5 commercial produced with Baz Luhrmann. Kidman says she remembers attending repeated fittings for the dress and that she still has the sketches from when Lagerfeld was drawing it.
“My deep, deep love of Karl came from this time together. So to be able to honour him and wear this now for Chanel…and show how these couture gowns last…if you take care of them and love them, they are timeless.”
Olivia Wilde in custom Chloé, inspired by a vintage Karl Lagerfeld look.
Elizabeth Cordry Shaffer
Bee Shaffer
Quannah Chasinghorse in Prabal Gurung
Anok Yai in Prabal Gurung inspired by Chanel SS93 Couture collection
Baz Luhrmann in Thom Browne with, Catherine Martin
Irina Shayk in Yohji Yamamoto
Eva Chen in Fendi haute couture by Kim Jones, reimagining a Lagerfeld SS 2000 dress.
Karen Elson in Christian Siriano
Gisele Bündchen in vintage Chanel SS 2007. Speaking to La La Anthony on the carpet, she explained that her fondest memory with Karl was running around Paris barefoot while shooting for a campaign. She is re-wearing the dress from an editorial shoot she did with Lagerfeld back in 2007.
Hugh Jackman in Zegna with his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness
Kate and Lila Moss in Fendi
Naomi Campbell in Chanel SS 2010 Couture
Margaret Qualley in vintage Chanel
Maude Apatow in Chloé
Vanessa Kirby in vintage Chloé
Ice Spice in Balmain
Michaela Coel in custom Schiaparelli. The dress features over 130,000 crystals.
James Corden and his wife, Julia Carey
Maya Hawke in Prada
Margot Robbie in a vintage Chanel 1993.
“I’m wearing Chanel. This dress was worn by Cindy Crawford in 1993 and they remade it for me. It’s a Karl design,” she explained. Robbie was the final Chanel ambassador chosen by Karl Lagerfeld, so she has a very special connection with the man and the house.
Keke Palmer in custom Sergio Hudson & Stuart Weitzman shoes
Adut Akech in custom Carolina Herrera
Suki Waterhouse in Fendi
Doja Cat in Oscar De La Renta, channelling Karl Lagerfeld’s beloved cat Choupette. It is also Doja’s debut on the Met steps.
Gwendoline Christie in Fendi
Ashley Graham in Harris Reed
Jessica Chastain in Gucci, with sunglasses as an homage to Karl Lagerfeld’s iconic eyewear.
Daisy Edgar-Jones in Gucci
Yara Shahidi in Jean Paul Gaultier as a tribute to the Chanel 93 haute couture collection.
Halle Bailey in Gucci
Julia Garner in Gucci with custom cape
Karlie Kloss in Loewe, debuting her pregnancy for the first time on the Met steps.
Amanda Seyfried in custom Oscar de la Renta, Stuart Weitzman shoes, and Cartier jewelry
Bianca Saunders in her own design, inspired by Karl’s early work at Patou and his SS 1996 gallery collection, with Usher, also in a Bianca Saunders design.
Grace Elizabeth in custom Christopher John Rogers
FKA Twigs in custom Maison Margiela
Billie Eilish in custom Simone Rocha
Kristen Stewart in Chanel
Carla Bruini
Jack Harlow
Camila Morrone in Rodarte
Jodie Comer in custom Burberry and Fred Leighton jewellery
Lil Nas X
Kerry Washington in custom Michael Kors
Emily Blunt in custom Michael Kors
Anne Hathaway in Atelier Versace.
Speaking to co-hosts Chloe Fineman and Derek Blasberg, who were complimenting Hathaway on her look, she said: “You’re giving me too much credit. I just do what Donatella tells me to do; very, very gratefully.”
“She sent me a sketch for this and I just said, ‘Alright!’ I work with an amazing team…I’m just a lucky girl.”
She also took the time to thank her hair stylist, Orlando Pita, who had brought a camellia (often used in Chanel designs) from a vintage Versace show in the 90s for Hathaway to wear.
Jared Leto
Kim Petras
Sienna Miller
Whitney Peak in Chanel FW21 Couture
Montana Cox
Ava Max
Alexandra Daddario in Christian Dior and Boucheron jewellery
Jennifer Lopez in custom Ralph Lauren
Pedro Pascal in Valentino FW23 RTW
Priyanka Chopra Jonas in Valentino and Bulgari jewellery
Miranda Kerr in custom Christian Dior
Kendall Jenner in custom Marc Jacobs. On the Met carpet Jenner explained that she had once been the ‘bride’ at one of Lagerfeld’s Chanel fashion shows. “I owe a lot to him, and what he did for me. It was such a pivotal point in my career,” she added.
Kylie Jenner in Haider Ackerman
Gigi Hadid in custom Givenchy
Kim Kardashian in custom Schiaparelli. She said: “I wanted pearls. I thought, what is more Karl? The iconic Chanel pearls is what I thought of, so I wanted to be dripping in pearls.”
Janelle Monáe in Thom Browne
Cara Delevingne wearing Karl Lagerfeld. Delevingne said she cried on the way over to the Met, remembering the loss of Lagerfeld, whom she was close to. She decided to pay homage to him wearing a take on his classic white shirt and, of course, a lot of jewellery, a pair of sunglasses and gloves.
Vanessa Hudgens in custom Michael Kors
Aubrey Plaza in custom Stella McCartney
Elle Fanning in custom Vivienne Westwood and Cartier jewellery. Her necklace was inspired by the one that Grace Kelly wore in a royal portrait.
Fanning told cohosts Chloe Fineman and Derek Blasberg that she met Karl Lagerfeld when she was 13 at her first fashion show ever; the 2004 Chanel haute couture show.
She explained that after the show she was chosen for the ‘Little Black Jacket’ book that Lagerfeld was styling. During his process, she says he was allowing people’s individual style and personality to shine through. “I had on a white dress and all he did was put on a daisy crown,” she described. “I thought, this is what Karl wanted me to look like, so this is what I’m doing tonight.”
Lily Aldridge in Oscar de la Renta
Lily Collins in custom Vera Wang
Viola Davis in custom Valentino
Cardi B in Chenpeng Studio
Florence Pugh in Valentino
Jenna Ortega
Bad Bunny in custom Jacquemus
Lizzo in Chanel
Paris Hilton in Marc Jacobs. On the carpet, Hilton remembered Lagerfeld. “Karl and I hung out in Paris a couple of times and he was such an inspiration to me always and we had so much fun…I’ve always looked up to him in many ways and I’m glad we’re honouring him tonight.”
Her dress was designed by Jacobs, who said: “First of all to dress Paris Hilton, how do you do that? I thought maybe it would be interesting and exciting to see her in a black gown and then we thought about leather.”
It was Paris who had asked for a little sparkle to then be added to the final design. “She looks fantastic,” he said.
Jeremy Pope in custom Balmain
Michelle Yeoh
Nicola and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham in Valentino
Eddie Redmayne and Hannah Bagshawe in Alexander McQueen
Mindy Kaling in Simkhai
Pete Davidson
Serena Williams in Gucci, with a serious serve of pearls to honour Karl. Williams also debuted her new pregnancy on the Met steps.
Olivia Rodrigo in custom Thom Browne looking like Coco Chanel herself.
Alton Mason honoured Karl Lagerfeld at the Met, as the first black male model to walk for Chanel.
Lily James
Sora Choi
Rihanna in Valentino and A$AP Rocky in Gucci
Madelyn Cline in Stella McCartney
Sydney Sweeney in Miu Miu
Salma Hayek in Gucci
Lea Michele in custom Michael Kors
Conan Gray in Balmain
