2021 Met Gala lacks usual star power, but Gen Z celebrities Timothée Chalamet, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X wow in Haider Ackermann, Oscar de La Renta and Versace on the red carpet
- This year’s Met Gala in New York was about a third smaller than usual, with about 300 guests – many of whom were first-timers at the event
- Singer Billie Eilish wore a peach Oscar de La Renta gown inspired by Marilyn Monroe, while rapper Lil Nas X paired a Versace bodysuit with a gold suit of armour
Actor Timothée Chalamet, singer Billie Eilish and rapper Lil Nas X kicked off a sparkling, youth-inspired Met Gala red carpet on September 13 celebrating the best of American fashion.
This year’s event, however, lacked the mega-watt star power of previous years, with fashion insiders griping that the normally very strict guest list featured a number of up-and-coming influencers and B-list celebrities.
Grammy winner Eilish, 19, shed her trademark baggy clothes for a plunging Oscar de La Renta peach gown that she said was inspired by Marilyn Monroe.
Lil Nas X, 22, the gay black musician behind hit song Old Town Road, wowed with a gold suit of armour that he took off to reveal a crystal-inspired bodysuit from Versace.
Poet Amanda Gorman chose a blue Vera Wang gown and crystal laurel crown headpiece that she said was intended to make her look like a “reimagined statute of liberty”.
The invitation-only Met Gala is a fundraising benefit for New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, and also marks the opening of the Costume Institute’s annual fashion exhibition which this year is titled “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion”.
Osaka wore a Japanese-inspired blue-and-red gown with a dramatic headpiece from Louis Vuitton, while actor Dan Levy opted for a bold, puff-sleeved creation featuring an artwork on the front that showed two men kissing from Loewe.
Many of the celebrities were first-timers at the Met Gala, including YouTuber Emma Chamberlain, television star Yara Shahidi and Brooklyn Beckham, son of English football player David Beckham.
Last year’s Met Gala was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, and the September 13 gathering was about a third smaller than usual, with about 300 guests – with proof of vaccination required – though they did not wear masks while posing for their entrances.
