12 Met Gala Entrances That Earned The Right To Be Called The Most Memorable Of All Time
They were each a real stunner, and when it comes to the Met Gala, that's no easy task.
The Met Gala has a way of turning a red carpet into a full-blown fashion event, and the entrances are often just as unforgettable as the outfits themselves.
Since 1946, the annual fundraiser for the Costume Institute has brought together designers, models, actors, musicians, and some of the biggest names in the world at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Every year comes with a new theme, and every year the pressure is on to make a statement the second the cameras start flashing.
From dramatic gowns to entrances that felt straight out of a movie, these Met Gala moments earned their place in fashion history.
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.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue2. 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.
Andrew Toth/Getty Images for The Mark Hotel3. Katy Perry
For the 2018 theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination," Katy Perry literally looked like she had just descended from the heavens, wearing a gold Versace dress and giant angel wings. The wings were so large that she had to ride in her vintage convertible with the top down.
Raymond Hall/GC Images
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.
Taylor Hill/Getty Images
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.
Karwai Tang/Getty Images
This is similar to the Oscars 2026 red carpet fails that became the most talked-about looks.
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 2,000 hours to create and featured 30,000 feathers.
The look also included 44-carat ruby nipple covers, which cost a whopping $250,000 apiece.
Neilson Barnard/Getty Images
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 in 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 aback."
Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
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 in a coat from Maison Margiela and a bishop's hat by Stephen Jones. The ensemble is truly one of the most iconic.
As she told Vogue about the hand-beaded look, "It would be a sin not to wear it."
Kevin Mazur/MG18/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
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 in Ancient Egyptian style, wearing an 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.
Theo Wargo/WireImage
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, causing Zendaya's Tommy Hilfiger dress to light up like magic.
David Fisher/REX/Shutterstock
11. Rihanna
Honestly, almost every ensemble that Rihanna wears to the Met Gala becomes iconic. Who can forget this yellow ensemble from 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 experience 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."
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
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.
Getty Images
We have to say, these looks are truly 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 they were really made for them, and we truly couldn't imagine anyone else wearing them.
What was your favorite look?
Want more “how did they pull that off?” moments? See which Oscars 2026 best-dressed stars stole attention early.
