The biggest red carpet shocks at the Met Gala – and the weirdest

The Met Gala is the one time of year that you can trust celebrities to bring their weirdest and most wonderful looks – and this year they delivered.

The first Monday of May brought the biggest names in showbiz to New York City for the 2026 Met Gala, led by co-chairs Beyonce, Nicole Kidman and Venus Williams, with Vogue queen Anna Wintour of course leading the charge.

Katy Perry made her Met Gala comeback after three years — and she did it completely incognito.

Less than 24 hours before fashion’s biggest night, the pop star had fans in a frenzy after posting a simple question on X: ‘Should I go to #TheMet?’
With the event just hours away, speculation quickly spiralled over whether Perry was teasing a surprise appearance or simply trolling fans.

And last night, as the Met Gala got underway, she delivered her answer.

When she was spotted, Perry looked almost completely unrecognisable in a dramatic all-white ensemble that leaned fully into the night’s ‘Fashion Is Art’ brief.

The structured gown featured a sculptural silhouette, paired with long opera gloves and an ultra-minimal neckline that left her shoulders bare.

But it was the headpiece that stole the show.

Covering her entire face, a metallic silver mask obscured her identity, framed by a mesh-like hood and long, dark hair cascading behind it, she looked a bit like she had a fencing match at 6, a space mission at 6:30, and the Met Gala at 7.

What was the theme for the Met Gala 2026?

This year’s theme was Costume Art, named after the museum’s new exhibition
The specific dress code for the gala was Fashion Is Art, with guests encouraged to explore fashion as an art form and to reflect on art history.

The effect was striking, with no visible facial features beyond a reflective surface.

According to Vanity Fair, a reporter called out, ‘Katy is this look AI?

Are you really here?’ And she shut the mask closed.

Things got even more theatrical as Perry took out and displayed a tarot card, showing it to the cameras.

The look quickly sparked conversation online, with fans trying to confirm it was Perry beneath the mask, while others praised the bold commitment to the theme.

One X user wrote: ‘okay katy perry highkey ate with her met gala look’ while another posted, ‘Katy Perry bringing out tarot cards at the Met Gala!!!

Omg I’m sat for the story telling!!!!

👀’

What is the tarot card Katy Perry held up at the Met Gala?

According to TheTarotGuide.com: ‘When The Magician appears in a Tarot card reading it is a sign that you have all the skills and abilities you need to be successful.

The universe is aligning to bring positive changes your way.

‘This Major Arcana trump card shows you that you must use your intellect, concentration and willpower to make things happen.

The Magician usually signifies a time in your life when you have the power to manifest the outcome you want.

If it is referring to other people in your life it usually refers to someone you can learn from whose ability and wisdom will impress you.’
Perry wasn’t the only star embracing the masked, slightly surreal end of the brief.

Heidi Klum is no stranger to costume art having spent years wearing the most outlandish costumes for her annual Halloween party, and she really leaned into the theme for this year’s Met Gala.

The supermodel, 52, arrived looking totally unrecognisable as a statue, inspired by Raffaelle Monti’s 1847 sculpture Veiled Vestal.

‘I was like, I want to become her,’ Heidi told Vogue, adding that it only took 20 minutes to get ready and, honestly, kudos to her embracing the creative freedom the theme allows.

Who had your favourite Met Gala look?

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The Queen of Pop, Madonna, made quite a spectacle when she arrived flanked by seven blindfolded women who helped carry her multiple trains.

The Vogue singer wore a witchy outfit featuring a black lace gown and hat with a boat fixed on top, all courtesy of Yves Saint Laurent.

Gwendoline Christie also made a statement on the red carpet in a dramatic red Giles Deacon gown.

The Game of Thrones star finished the look with a playful Stephen Jones headpiece and a mask crafted to resemble her own face, created by artist Gillian Wearing.

The effect was almost as uncanny as Perry’s reflective mask.

Other celebrities were much less daring but looked stunning nonetheless, with co-chair Nicole Kidman sauntering into the museum in a striking red Chanel gown adorned with sequins and feathers.

Sabrina Carpenter channelled 1920s glam with a bejewelled headpiece and a halterneck dress made of film strips of Audrey Hepburn movie Sabrina.

Kendall Jenner freed the (fake) nipple and looked like a Greek goddess in a sensational cream Zac Posen gown with twisted fabric.

It seems she took a touch of inspo from her big sister Kim Kardashian, who also wore fake nipples in a corseted look that leaned into exaggerated, cone-like structure, courtesy of artists Allen Jones and Whitaker Malem — a duo known for turning the human form into something closer to a statue than clothing.

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