20 Craziest Met Gala Outfits: From Katy Perry's Chandelier-Inspired Costume to Zendaya's Cinderella Gown

Alton Mason turned heads at the 2023 Met Gala in his custom Karl Lagerfeld couture, designed by creative director Hun Kim. The look featured details associated with classic bridal fashion — something the late designer envisioned for his bridalwear line — like a lengthy wedding veil and ruffled boots. He completed the look with a fabric bouquet.

"Accentuated by a strong shoulder silhouette, the jumpsuit features a beaded lace corset. The sweetheart neckline was inspired by a jacket sourced from Karl's personal design archives," Kim explained the look in an interview with GRAZIA.

Beyoncé wowed everyone at the 2015 Met Gala with her Givenchy gown that gave a nod to the event's theme at the time: "China: Through the Looking Glass."

Billy Porter made a surprising entrance at the 2019 Met Gala, as he was carried by six shirtless men. Everyone looked like they had come straight from Ancient Egypt with the gold outfits.

The Cinderella star completed his look with 10-foot wings, gold-leaf shoes and a gold headpiece.

"What I love about having it at the Met Gala, and contextualizing camp, is it brings honor to a word and genre that can be discounted very often, or thought of as cheesy. When it's done properly, it's one of the highest forms of fashion and art," he told Vogue.

During the 2022 Met Gala, Cara Delevingne walked in her red jacket and pants from Dior Haute Couture before exposing her topless torso covered in gold paint. Despite the design, the supermodel did not try to hide her psoriasis from the public.

marked his memorable Met Gala debut in 2021 by wearing a J.W. Anderson costume, which showed two men shaped like maps kissing.

In an Instagram post, Levy explained the meaning behind his look.

"With support from the estate of American multimedia artist and LGBTQIA+ activist, David Wojnarovicz (1954-1992), Jonathan and the design team built upon an image of two men kissing from Wojnarovicz's work, F--- You F----- F-----, named after a homophobic cartoon the artist had come across," he said.

Levy continued, "But rather than feed on the message of hate, we wanted to celebrate queer love and visibility — acknowledging how hard artists like Wojnarovicz had to fight, while also presenting the imagery in a way that offered a hopeful message. Tonight, we're celebrating the resilience, the love, and the joy of the community while honoring a crucial American voice that was taken from us too soon."

Doja Cat looked unrecognizable when she stepped out at the 2023 Met Gala in her Choupette costume.

"I feel very calm and relaxed," she said during the event. "I do hope to have some good conversation, have some fun and meet some cool people."

Paying tribute to the 2023 Met Gala theme, "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty," Janelle Monaé surprised everyone with her large, black-and-white tweed tuxedo suit before revealing her sheer black tulle dress, which matched her black bikini underneath.

Jared Leto became one of the crowd's favorites at the 2023 Met Gala because of his cat costume, inspired by Lagerfeld's beloved pet. The outfit also featured a removable head.

Katy Perry lit up the 2019 Met Gala when she showed up as a chandelier, which seemingly referenced Susan Sontag's 1964 essay.

"There is a built-in corset consisting of 18 steel bones and two hidden battery packs to illuminate the lights," Moschino designer Jeremy Scott told Vogue. "I mean who wants to wear a chandelier that doesn't light up!"

Thierry Mugler's custom dress gave Kim Kardashian her desired "wet, dripping" look at the 2019 Met Gala. The skin-tone dress had crustal droplets and a corset that gave her a more defined physique.

The Keeping Up With the Kardashians alum confused everyone with her 2021 Met Gala look as she wore her blackout gown from Balenciaga. Kardashian reportedly accepted advice from the brand's creative director Demna.

"Demna and the team were like, 'This is a costume gala. This is not a Vanity Fair party where everyone looks beautiful. There's a theme and you have to wear the mask. That is the look,'" she said, explaining that the theme "In America: A Lexicon of Fashion" gave them the idea.

Lady Gaga arrived at the 2019 Met Gala in her massive fuchsia pink cape gown designed by her friend Brandon Maxwell. She removed the dress to unveil her second look: a black corseted dress.

The "Bad Romance" hitmaker also became a showstopper when she sported black undergarments paired with pantyhose.

Her third and final look showed her in a hot pink column gown that matched her bright lipstick.

The 2023 Met Gala welcomed another celebrity who shocked the crowd with a crazy outfit.

Lil Nas X flaunted his well-defined physique colored with silver paint and accessorized his whole body with Swarovski crystals and pearls. He hid his private part with a metallic thong that matched his sparkly body paint.

Madonna opted to wear a sheer Givenchy outfit that exposed her chest and bottom, earning the spotlight at the event. Fans later learned the powerful meaning behind her getup, saying it was a political statement to fight ageism.

Wearing the gown that "only women who have the confidence of a queen could wear," Rihanna graced the red carpet of the 2015 Met Gala while wearing Chinese designer Guo Pei's yellow frock.

Despite being a head-turner, she told Access Hollywood in 2020 that she felt like she looked funny in her gala dress.

"I remember being so scared to get out of that car because I felt like, 'I'm doing too much.' I was driving past the red carpet, and I was just seeing, like, gowns, and I was like, 'Oh my god, 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. Let's just go.' I know. I don't regret it,'" the "Umbrella" singer recalled.

Her look eventually created endless memes that went viral.

Sarah Jessica Parker offered a jaw-dropping Met Gala moment in 2018 when she dedicated herself to following the dress code based on the theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination."

She opted to wear a Dolce & Gabbana dress with red heart accents and a long train. She completed her look with a headpiece and a gold handbag.

"I am inspired by the themes. One can only do your best. This was particularly enjoyable because Dolce & Gabbana — they're devoted observant Catholics — and so they've grown up with the church and imagery and they had a lot of strong feelings and beautiful sketches so it was easy," Parker told E!.

At the 2015 Met Gala, Solange Knowles honored the theme by wearing her iconic sculptural mini dress.

"I really, really enjoyed my Met Ball look from two years ago," she informed Refinery29. "It gave the illusion of a fan — the theme was '[China:] Through the Looking Glass,' and I wanted to be as respectful as possible to the theme."

Zendaya became a real-life princess with the help of her stylist, Law Roach. The Spider-Man: No Way Home star arrived in her Cinderella-inspired ballgown dress while accompanied by Roach, who carried a wand to light up her dress.