From sheer done right to dystopian dressing, trends that defined the Met Gala 2026 red carpet

The 2026 Met Gala unfolded on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, once again cementing its place as fashion’s most high-stakes spectacle. With co-chairs Beyonce, Nicole Kidman, and Venus Williams at the helm, the night brought together a guest list primed for maximum impact– and, inevitably, maximal interpretation. This year’s exhibition, ‘Costume Art’, placed the dressed body at the centre of the conversation, collapsing the distance between garment and artwork. Housed in the museum’s expansive new galleries, the show paired historic artefacts with contemporary fashion, reframing clothing as both object and expression. In sync, the dress code “Fashion Is Art” invited attendees to move beyond dressing up and step into something closer to performance.

The result was a carpet that felt less like a procession of looks and more like a live exhibition. Some leaned into classical references, others explored anatomy, illusion, and surrealism– while a few took the brief and ran straight into the unexpected. And with a guest list that included Anne Hathaway, Doja Cat, Alex Consani, Isha Ambani, Lisa, and Teyana Taylor, there was no shortage of moments. Below are some of the notable trends from this year’s Met Gala red (sorry, beige) carpet. 

Seeing sheer

Sheer dressing returned (as it always does) but this time with far more precision. Gigi Hadid in Miu Miu led the charge with a barely-there chiffon moment that still felt controlled, while Zoë Kravitz’s Saint Laurent lace dress balanced exposure with structure. Cara Delevingne opted for a sheer-backed Ralph Lauren gown that revealed just enough, and Camila Mendes brought in a more embellished take via Manish Malhotra. Doja Cat sported a sheer silicone dress. The difference this year was restraint– designers weren’t chasing shock value. Instead, sheer became a tool to frame the body, not just reveal it. The effect was less “naked dress,” more composition. Where every cutout, panel, and layer felt placed with intent rather than impulse.

Leather for spring? Groundbreaking

Forget florals. The men at the Met Gala collectively decided that May called for leather, and not in small doses. Nicholas Hoult showed up in full Prada leather (jacket, trousers, tie), the works. Romeo Beckham kept it slightly lighter with Burberry leather lapels, while Patrick Schwarzenegger leaned into a cropped leather jacket by Public School. Bill Skarsgård added to the lineup in Thom Browne, proving this wasn’t a one-off. It was cohesive, intentional, and surprisingly effective. On a carpet that could have easily gone soft and romantic, leather grounded everything– adding edge, weight, and a sense that not everyone was interested in playing pretty.

Sculptural silhouettes

This was the year fashion stopped draping and started building. Kim Kardashian doubled down on sculptural dressing with a rigid breastplate that felt closer to armour than eveningwear, while Hailey Bieber echoed the idea with her own structured interpretation. Isha Ambani’s Gaurav Gupta cape brought volume and drama without losing form, and Ananya Birla’s Subodh Gupta mask turned the face into an extension of the silhouette. These weren’t clothes that followed the body– they reshaped it entirely. The emphasis was on form, proportion, and impact, making each look feel engineered rather than styled, and firmly placing sculptural dressing at the centre of the night’s visual language.

(Faux) feathers frenzy

Feathers made their return, but not in the overwhelming, full-plume way we’ve seen before. This time, they were strategic. Nicole Kidman’s Chanel gown used feathers at the waist and cuffs, creating texture without excess. Beyoncé reserved hers for a dramatic train, letting them add movement rather than volume. Lena Dunham leaned into a plume-heavy neckline in Valentino, while Anna Wintour layered feathers through a turquoise Chanel jacket. The common thread was control– feathers weren’t the story, but they elevated it. Used sparingly, they shifted silhouettes, added dimension, and gave otherwise structured looks a sense of motion.

Pops of colour

While many leaned into neutrals, a select few treated the carpet like a canvas. Yves Klein blue emerged as the standout shade, with Hailey Bieber pairing a gold bustier with an ultramarine skirt, and Tessa Thompson matching her Valentino look down to the fingertips. Lena Dunham embraced a saturated red moment, while Colman Domingo went full spectrum in a multicoloured ensemble. These weren’t subtle colour choices– they were deliberate, high-impact decisions that stood out against the sea of neutrals. It felt like a direct nod to art itself, where colour isn’t just decorative, but central to the narrative.

In the nude

The naked dress has been everywhere for years, but this time it came with a twist. Kylie Jenner’s Schiaparelli look incorporated sculpted anatomical details, blurring the line between body and garment. Kendall Jenner played with illusion through intentional exposure, while Kim Kardashian gave it structure with a rust-toned breastplate. Sabine Getty pushed it further with a painted-on couture effect that mimicked skin itself. The result was a category that felt less about provocation and more about experimentation– taking a familiar red carpet trope and forcing it into new territory.

Dystopian dressing

Not everyone looked to the past for inspiration. Some went straight into the future, and it wasn’t exactly optimistic. Janelle Monáe fused nature with technology in a look threaded with wires and surreal elements, while Katy Perry wore a martian-like mask that obscured her face entirely. Jordan Roth added a theatrical, almost haunting element with a surreal companion piece, and Naomi Osaka introduced darker, more dramatic detailing into her look. Together, they shifted the narrative from historical art references to speculative ones– where fashion imagined a future that felt slightly off, but impossible to ignore.

Bodies, bodies, bodies

If there was one trend no one saw coming, it was this. Lisa arrived with additional limbs integrated into her look, while Gwendoline Christie wore an extra face as part of her ensemble. Beyonce and Mona Patel’s skeletal detailing offered internal takes on the idea, and Sabine Getty added painted hands into her design. Katy Perry even added an extra finger to her gloves. It was surreal, slightly unsettling, and entirely on-theme. In a year focused on the body as art, some attendees took that idea literally– by adding more of it.

Images: Getty Images

Also read: Why Indian craft dominated the Met Gala 2026 conversation

Also read: Celebs dressed like famous artworks at the Met Gala 2026—and these were their references