The 2026 Met Gala is happening today, Monday, May 4, 2026, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Red carpet arrivals begin streaming at 6 p.m. ET on Vogue's official channels, with E! airing a dedicated special from 6–9 p.m. ET. This year's theme is "Costume Art" with a dress code of "Fashion is Art," and co-chairs Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour are leading fashion's most anticipated night of the year.
What Is the Met Gala?
The Met Gala — formally known as the Costume Institute Benefit — is the Metropolitan Museum of Art's annual fundraising gala for its Costume Institute. Held every year on the first Monday in May, the event is equal parts charity dinner, fashion showcase, and pop-culture spectacle. It raises millions of dollars to fund the Costume Institute's exhibitions and acquisitions, while simultaneously serving as the unofficial kickoff to the fashion world's summer season.
The event was founded in 1948 by publicist Eleanor Lambert as a midnight dinner that cost just $50 a ticket. Today, a single ticket is widely reported to cost upward of $75,000, with full tables going for far more. Despite its exclusive price tag, the gala draws enormous global attention — and the 2025 edition set a record, raising $31 million, the highest gross in the event's 78-year history.
The 2026 Theme: "Costume Art" and What It Means
This year's theme, "Costume Art," is more than a clever title — it's a direct provocation. The dress code, "Fashion is Art," invites guests to show up dressed as living arguments for why clothing deserves the same reverence as painting or sculpture. It's a thesis the fashion world has debated for decades, and the Met Gala is, once again, making it the centerpiece of the conversation.
The accompanying Costume Art exhibition features roughly 400 garments, accessories, and artworks spanning 5,000 years of human history. Uniquely, the show is organized by body type rather than era or geographic origin — a curatorial choice that challenges traditional hierarchies in fashion history and centers the human form as the constant across millennia of style.
The exhibition will open to the general public on May 10, 2026, giving fashion fans and curious museum-goers a chance to experience the show after the celebrity fanfare fades.
The 2026 Co-Chairs: A Power Lineup
The co-chairs of the Met Gala set the tone for the evening, and this year's lineup is unusually star-dense. Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour — Vogue's editor-in-chief and the gala's longtime driving force — are leading the night. Each brings a different kind of cultural authority: Beyoncé as the defining entertainer of her generation, Kidman as a decades-long Hollywood icon, Williams as a sports legend who has long bridged athletics and high fashion, and Wintour as the architect of the modern fashion establishment.
The Host Committee is equally impressive. Zoë Kravitz and designer Anthony Vaccarello co-chair a committee that includes Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, and Angela Bassett, among others — a mix of emerging pop stars, established A-listers, and genre-defying artists whose fashion choices are already closely watched.
The Controversy: Jeff Bezos and the Boycott Call
Not everything about the 2026 gala has been warmly received. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos serve as honorary chairs and lead sponsors — a role that has drawn pointed criticism. At least one activist group has called for a public boycott of the event, citing concerns about Bezos's business practices and the optics of associating philanthropy with one of the world's wealthiest figures during a period of significant economic anxiety for working-class Americans.
The tension isn't new to the Met Gala — the event has always existed at the intersection of extreme wealth and cultural aspiration — but the Bezos connection has sharpened the debate about who fashion's biggest night actually serves and celebrates.
How and Where to Watch the 2026 Met Gala
You don't need an invitation to follow along. Here's the complete breakdown of where to watch:
- Vogue Livestream: Begins at 6 p.m. ET on Vogue.com, YouTube, and TikTok. Ashley Graham, La La Anthony, and Cara Delevingne will host, with Emma Chamberlain returning as special red carpet correspondent for her sixth consecutive year.
- E! Network: Airs a red carpet special from 6–9 p.m. ET, with a separate social livestream beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET.
- Social Media: Real-time coverage across TikTok, Instagram, and X (Twitter) will make it nearly impossible to avoid, even if you're not actively watching.
For full streaming details and live updates, Yahoo Entertainment's live blog is covering arrivals in real time, and USA Today has a comprehensive streaming guide as well.
A New Chapter for The Met: The Condé Nast Galleries
The 2026 Met Gala isn't just another annual benefit — it marks the launch of the new Condé M. Nast Galleries at The Met. The partnership between Condé Nast (Vogue's parent company) and the Metropolitan Museum of Art formalizes a relationship that has existed informally for decades and signals a new era of institutional collaboration between the media and museum worlds. The galleries will give permanent space to fashion as a subject of serious scholarly and cultural inquiry, rather than a temporary exhibition that comes and goes.
Why It Matters
The Met Gala is easy to dismiss as a billionaire fashion party, but it consistently functions as a cultural barometer. The outfits guests choose aren't random — they're carefully negotiated statements about identity, politics, and aspiration. When Rihanna wore her iconic yellow cape in 2015, or when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wore "Tax the Rich" in 2021, the Met Gala became a platform for messaging that reached audiences far beyond the fashion world.
This year's "Fashion is Art" theme arrives during a moment when AI-generated imagery is raising genuine questions about human creativity, when fast fashion is under fire for its environmental impact, and when the concept of luxury itself is being reimagined. Asking whether fashion is art isn't just an aesthetic question — it's a question about value, labor, and what humans make with their hands and imaginations.
The $31 million raised in 2025 also demonstrates that the Met Gala, whatever its contradictions, remains one of the most effective single-night cultural fundraisers in the world. That money directly funds conservation, curatorial work, and educational programming at one of the world's great museums.
If you're interested in other major cultural and entertainment events happening this week, check out our roundup of the best new shows streaming in May 2026 or our look at Ridley Scott at 88 and his continued impact on cinema.
What to Watch For Tonight
Beyond the livestream details, here are the storylines worth following as the red carpet unfolds:
- Beyoncé's look: As a co-chair, her outfit will likely be the night's most analyzed. Expect something that engages directly with the "Fashion is Art" theme.
- Sabrina Carpenter's moment: Coming off one of the biggest pop years in recent memory, her Host Committee status means she'll be front and center.
- The body-type curation story: How guests and press engage with the exhibition's unconventional organizational structure will shape how the "Costume Art" concept lands with the public.
- Activist presence: Given the boycott call around the Bezos sponsorship, watch for whether any guests make subtle or overt statements.
- Emma Chamberlain's interviews: Now in her sixth year, Chamberlain has become an institution in her own right, consistently getting candid moments that more traditional outlets don't.
Frequently Asked Questions
What time does the Met Gala red carpet start in 2026?
The official Vogue livestream begins at 6 p.m. ET on May 4, 2026, covering the red carpet arrivals. E! starts its social livestream a bit earlier, at 5:30 p.m. ET, with its broadcast special running from 6–9 p.m. ET. Guests typically begin arriving around that 6 p.m. window, though the event itself continues well into the evening behind closed doors.
Who are the co-chairs of the 2026 Met Gala?
The 2026 co-chairs are Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos serve as honorary chairs and lead sponsors. Zoë Kravitz and designer Anthony Vaccarello co-chair the Host Committee.
What is the 2026 Met Gala theme?
The 2026 Met Gala theme is "Costume Art," with a dress code of "Fashion is Art." The accompanying exhibition features approximately 400 garments and artworks spanning 5,000 years, organized by body type rather than historical era. The show opens to the public on May 10, 2026.
Why is there a boycott of the 2026 Met Gala?
At least one activist group has called for a boycott due to the involvement of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos as honorary chairs and lead sponsors. Critics object to the association of a high-profile philanthropic event with Bezos, pointing to concerns about labor practices at Amazon and broader questions about whether billionaire philanthropy is an appropriate framework for cultural institutions.
When does the Costume Art exhibition open to the public?
The Costume Art exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art opens to the general public on May 10, 2026, one week after the gala. It will be housed in the newly launched Condé M. Nast Galleries at The Met, a formal partnership between Condé Nast and the museum that debuts alongside this year's event.
How much money does the Met Gala raise?
The 2025 Met Gala raised a record $31 million — the highest single-event gross in the benefit's 78-year history. All proceeds go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute, funding exhibitions, conservation, and educational programming. The 2026 gala is expected to match or exceed that figure.
