2026 Met Gala: Jeff Bezos Sponsorship Sparks Boycott, Mayor Skips
The 2026 Met Gala, held on the first Monday in May, raised funds for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute and launched the 'Costume Art' exhibition opening May 10, 2026. The dress code 'Fashion is Art' inspired varied interpretations: Hunter Schafer wore a dress based on Gustav Klimt's 'Mäda Primavesi'; Chase Infiniti channeled a sequined 'Venus de Milo'; Heidi Klum arrived as a marble statue referencing Rafaelle Monti's 'Veiled Vestal'; Madonna donned a ship-shaped fascinator; Eileen Gu wore an Iris Van Herpen dress blowing real bubbles. Controversy erupted after former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren Sánchez Bezos paid $10 million to become lead sponsors in November 2025, prompting boycott calls and several A-listers to skip the event. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani broke a tradition by not attending, the first mayor to do so since 2002.
Key facts
- The 2026 Met Gala took place on the first Monday in May 2026.
- The event raised money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.
- The 'Costume Art' exhibition opens May 10, 2026.
- The theme was 'Fashion is Art'.
- Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos paid $10 million to be lead sponsors in November 2025.
- Boycott calls and A-list absences occurred due to the Bezos sponsorship.
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani was the first NYC mayor since 2002 to skip the gala.
- Heidi Klum wore a statue-like ensemble inspired by Rafaelle Monti's 'Veiled Vestal'.
Entities
Artists
- Hunter Schafer
- Chase Infiniti
- Heidi Klum
- Madonna
- Eileen Gu
- Iris Van Herpen
- Rafaelle Monti
- Gustav Klimt
- Jeff Bezos
- Lauren Sánchez Bezos
- Zohran Mamdani
- Sabrina Carpenter
- Rihanna
- A$AP Rocky
- Doechii
- Kim Kardashian
- Blake Lively
- Bad Bunny
- María Zardoya
- Blue Ivy
- Jay-Z
- Beyoncé
- Hudson Williams
- Connor Storrie
- Emma Chamberlain
- LISA
- Sarah Paulson
- Katy Perry
- Nicole Kidman
- Venus Williams
- Doja Cat
- Teyana Taylor
- Lisa
- Elizabeth Debicki
- Lena Dunham
- Anthony Vaccarello
- Zoë Kravitz
- Anna Wintour
- Lauren Sanchez Bezos
- Ashley Graham
- Cara Delevigne
- La La Anthony
- Blue Ivy Carter
- Naomi Osaka
- Ben Platt
- Georges Seurat
- Olivier Rousteing
- Yseult
- Andrew Bolton
- Max Hollein
- Zoe Kravitz
- Chloe Malle
- Simone Ashley
- Alex Consani
- Lauren Sánchez
- Eleanor Lambert
- Diana Vreeland
Institutions
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Costume Institute
- Amazon
- Vogue
- Vanity Fair
- Getty Images
- Condé Nast
- BBC News
- Balmain
- Saint Laurent
- AFP
- Condé M. Nast Galleries
- Madame Tussauds
- Waldorf Astoria
Locations
- New York City
- United States
- New York
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Condé M. Nast Galleries
- Great Hall
- Waldorf Astoria