The Met Gala, the world’s most famous fashion fundraiser, returns on 4 May with the theme ‘Fashion as Art’.

The event was first held in 1948 and over the decades, has evolved from a society dinner into a global cultural phenomenon, where fashion pushes boundaries to their absolute limit.

While many attendees strive for elegance or homage, some looks inevitably go further, sparking outrage, debate, and even global controversy.

From political slogans to boundary-pushing silhouettes, we delve into nine of the most scandalous Met Gala looks in history.

1. Princess Diana, 1996

When Princess Diana attended the Met Gala in 1996, it was widely interpreted as a declaration of independence following her split from Prince Charles.

The newly divorced princess wore a navy silk slip dress by John Galliano for Dior, stepping firmly outside of the confines of royal dress codes.

The lingerie-inspired silhouette – reportedly altered to be more revealing – was paired with her iconic sapphire and pearl choker, the same one she paired with her infamous 1994 ‘revenge dress’.

At the time, Diana’s understated sensuality shocked traditionalists, but in retrospect, it marked a turning point in how she used fashion to shape her own narrative.

2. Rihanna, 2015

Rihanna has become one of the Met Gala’s most iconic celebrities, but her 2015 appearance remains one of the most talked-about.

Wearing an imperial yellow couture gown by Chinese designer Guo Pei, the singer honoured the “China: Through the Looking Glass” theme with a sweeping, fur-trimmed train that required several assistants.

While fashion insiders praised the hand-embroidered craftsmanship which took over two years – the internet had other ideas, quickly turning the look into viral memes likening it to an omelette or pizza.

The backlash highlighted the tension between high fashion and mass perception, ultimately reinforcing Rihanna’s ability to command both.

3. Rihanna, 2018

Returning for the “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination” exhibition three years later, Rihanna embraced the theme very on the nose.

Her Maison Margiela look, designed by John Galliano, featured a jewel-encrusted mini dress, matching coat and a papal mitre.

The ensemble was widely praised for its commitment to the brief, but it also drew criticism from some who viewed the religious references as inappropriate and by even some, as blasphemous.

4. Katy Perry, 2019

For the 2019 “Camp: Notes on Fashion” theme, singer Katy Perry leaned fully into theatrical excess. Designed by Moschino’s Jeremy Scott, her chandelier dress featured working lights and required careful navigation of the carpet.

Later, she swapped the elaborate look for a cheeseburger costume at the after-party – an outfit that divided opinion between those who embraced the humour and those who felt it veered into gimmick.

5. Jared Leto, 2019

That same year, Jared Leto arrived in a red Gucci ensemble designed by Alessandro Michele – complete with a lifelike replica of his own head.

The accessory quickly became one of the night’s most surreal talking points, with guests reportedly posing with it throughout the evening. While undeniably absurd, it also raised questions about the boundaries of fashion versus performance art.

6. Cardi B, 2019

Cardi B made a dramatic entrance in a custom Thom Browne gown that epitomised excess for the 2019 Met Gala themed “Camp: Notes on Fashion”.

The deep red dress featured a quilted bodice complete with 44 carats of rubies and an enormous circular train extending several metres, reportedly requiring multiple attendants to manage.

While widely admired for the sheer scale of the look, the gown sparked debate about practicality and perception of excess for ostentation’s sake, even by Met Gala standards.

7. Kim Kardashian, 2021

In 2021, Kim Kardashian made headlines by covering her entire body – including her face – in a black Balenciaga ensemble designed by label’s creative director Demna.

The look, reportedly influenced by her then-husband Kanye West, was intended to shift focus from the wearer to the silhouette.

Critics, however, questioned whether removing identity altogether undermined the purpose of celebrity fashion. The polarising response ensured its place in Met Gala history.

8. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 2021

U.S politician and activist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also known as ‘AOC’, made one of the evening’s most overtly political statements in a white gown by Aurora James, emblazoned with the words “Tax the Rich” in red lettering.

Supporters praised the boldness of bringing a progressive message into an elite setting, while critics accused her of hypocrisy for attending the event at all. The look demonstrated the Met Gala’s growing role as a platform not just for fashion, but for ideology.

9. Kim Kardashian, 2022

While you may have thought Rihanna to be the only celebrity to make the list twice, publicity guru Kim Kardashian sparked debate for the second time when she wore Marilyn Monroe’s original 1962 “Happy Birthday Mr President” dress to the 2022 Met Gala – an instant headline-making choice that drew backlash from conservation experts and historians, some of whom claimed the garment was damaged after being worn.

Though intended as a tribute to the late Marilyn Monroe, critics argued that such a fragile and culturally significant piece should never have left archival preservation.

While reports of damage remain contested, the moment reignited an ongoing debate around fashion history, conservation and the cost of publicity.

In March, the Metropolitan Museum of Art received a special delivery: 57 rolls of pristine white carpet, each stretching nearly 100 feet long. Stored securely until around 3 a.m. on the first Monday in May, the precious fabric will be unfurled down the museum’s iconic Fifth Avenue steps and meticulously hand-painted by a team of artists, transforming it into the stage for hundreds of VIPs who will strut, sashay, and smize their way into the Met Gala later that evening.

The man behind those 73,625 square feet of magic carpet is 35-year-old Sivan Santhosh, co-owner of Neytt by Extraweave, based in Kerala, India. He started the company with his wife, Nimisha Srinivas, in 2021 continuing a family legacy of carpet weaving that stretches back more than a century. Neytt has manufactured the Met Gala’s red carpet for the 2022, 2023 and 2025 ceremonies — as well as this year’s event, taking place Monday.

Santhosh’s carpets have seen it all: Kim Kardashian in Marilyn Monroe’s iconic “Mr President” gown; Doja Cat in cosplay as Karl Lagerfeld’s cat, Choupette; and two Rihanna pregnancy bump reveals. It’s the stage for some of fashion’s most talked-about moments.

Only after months of creating the first carpet was it revealed to Santhosh and Srinivas that the NDA-shrouded event they had been working on was none other than the Met Gala.

“We started with the initial prototyping and development, but we didn’t know who the client was,” he told The Independent. “Only once the samples were approved, we were told who it was for, and we were ecstatic. But because we’re from a small town, nobody knew what the scale of the Met Gala was but only after it came out in the press, did people know that this was something very big.”

Santhosh and his team quickly learned how high the stakes were. The Met’s brief called for a “blank canvas” for artists to paint on but with a crucial caveat: the carpet’s construction and texture had to withstand the weight — and spectacle — of the decadent, eccentric looks set to parade across it. In other words, it had to be celebrity-proof.

“We make the weave tighter so that celebrities in stilettos don’t trip and fall down, and that their garments don’t get caught,” Santhosh explains. “Even a tiny blemish could be visible on a carpet like this, so we make sure everything is perfect.” Neytt went through multiple rounds of prototyping and a few rejections from the Met’s design team to get it right.

This event, after all, is a military-style operation. The process of laying down and decorating the carpet is so secretive that even Santhosh and his team aren’t involved.

“They have their own dedicated team in New York,” he says of the rolling out of the carpet. “No phones are allowed in the vicinity – it’s very, very private.”

Still, that doesn’t mean that Santhosh relaxes once the carpet is handed over. “We’re on our toes all the time,” he says. “And we always wait till the event is actually over to get the final feedback, so there’s always some kind of pressure.”

The Met Gala didn’t always have a red carpet — in fact, it’s only a relatively recent addition to the event. When the Met Gala began in 1948 as a high-society New York fundraiser, “doing the carpet” simply meant laying rubber treads over the museum’s concrete steps to keep unsteady VIPs from slipping after a few martinis.

When Vogue’s Anna Wintour took over as the gala’s chair in 1995, guests were still arriving on the same concrete steps; their delicate stilettos, silk dresses and long gowns snagging on the granite. In the mid-2000s, red runners were first laid along each step, before eventually expanding into a full carpet in the years that followed.

As the event has grown more extravagant, so too has the carpet. In 2016, celebrities walked along a cream rug with red and pink color-blocking as part of the “Manus x Machina” theme. In 2019, a Barbie pink rug was rolled out for that year’s event “Camp: Notes on Fashion.” Until 2022, the carpets were produced by a New Jersey firm before Neytt took over the contract in a move toward a more sustainable manufacturing process.

The role has been an honor for Santhosh and his family in Cherthala, Kerala, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, who founded a carpet business in 1917.

“When we got the job, it was a proud moment for the company, also for India, that we are from a smaller town and doing something of this scale,” he says. “Lots of entrepreneurs have reached out to us, and we’re happy that we can give people confidence and inspire people to dream bigger.”

Santhosh’s favorite carpet was last year’s midnight blue design dotted with white-and-yellow daffodils for the theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” which encouraged guests to explore Black dandyism style and identity.

“It was really nice to see people dress up and show their roots,” he says. “It was a very happy moment for us.”

Monday night’s event looks set to be star-studded despite some controversy. In attendance will be Beyoncé (who hasn’t been to the Met Gala in a decade), Nicole Kidman and Venus Williams, acting as honorary hosts alongside Wintour. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren Sánchez Bezos, are the main financial donors for the accompanying Met exhibition and the party itself (a choice that has been the subject of recent boycotts).

The dress code, “Fashion is Art,” is inspired by the Costume Institute’s spring show, “Costume Art,” which is said to encourage guests to think about how they can use their bodies as a blank canvas (think sculptural suits, archival designs and probably a lot of naked dresses).

While Santhosh won’t be there on the night, I wonder if he has had direct communication with the bobbed, sunglasses-clad lady behind it all. Has Wintour sent him a direct congratulations on the carpet in previous years?

“No, not yet… hopefully soon,” he says excitedly. “Hopefully, we’ll also get invited to the Met Gala at one point in time.”