Chloe Malle, the successor to legendary former Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, appeared to have a lonely evening as she was left to navigate fashion's biggest night without the high-powered executive by her side. This year's Met Gala marked the first in Wintour's new role as Vogue's global creative director and chief content officer for Conde Nast, while Malle took over as head of editorial content for US Vogue.
However, the two were barely seen together during the red carpet portion of Monday night's event. Malle arrived solo early in the evening, wearing a marigold-orange chiffon gown by New York designer Colleen Allen, paired with Old-Hollywood style curls and a silver charm necklace by Fred Leighton jewelry. The dress was inspired by Flaming June, a classical painting by Sir Frederic Leighton.
For her part, Wintour looked her typical glamorous self, sporting a dramatic turquoise and black feathered jacket by Chanel, paired with her signature black sunglasses and styled bob. The two Vogue stars were not seen interacting much on the red carpet, and fans on social media were left underwhelmed by Malle's sartorial choice.
Social Media Backlash
Criticism quickly poured in on X (formerly Twitter). One user wrote, 'Kk in what world is this costume art.' Another agreed, 'The pose is giving English teacher.' A third commenter stated, 'She could’ve stayed home with that.' Someone else typed, 'Beautiful, simple and plain not right for gala..' One person chimed in, 'This is the new editor of Vogue? I’m not impressed with her dress at all.'
This year's dress code was 'fashion is art,' which served as a more specific baseline for guests against the gala's overall theme of 'costume art.' The New York City museum paired historical and contemporary garments from the Costume Institute for the exhibition, which will be loosely divided into three categories: the classical body and the nude body, aging bodies and pregnant bodies, and the anatomical body.
Malle's Interview and Aspirations
While getting ready for the Met Gala, Malle sat with CNN for an interview, during which she was asked who she wanted her dress to make an impact on. 'I want fashion people to be, like, "Oh, awesome, I like that dress, and I love Colleen, what a cool thing,"' Malle said. 'And I want my mom's friends to be like, "Flaming June, that's fantastic, and so pretty,"' she continued.
Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos, worth an estimated $224.2 billion, and his wife, Lauren Sanchez, footed most of the bill for the event. The A-list guest list included Beyonce, Kim Kardashian, Katy Perry, and Bad Bunny, as well as billionaires such as Michael Bloomberg, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, and Isha Ambani. Actress Blake Lively, who settled her bombshell lawsuit against It Ends With Us costar Justin Baldoni on May 4, arrived in a surprise appearance wearing archival Versace.
Malle Praises Sanchez
During the interview, Malle also praised Sanchez as a 'force.' Malle was one of the first to profile the billionaire three years ago for a Vogue article. 'Lauren is a force, and she's moving into all worlds,' Malle said. 'It's been amazing for the museum, and for the Met Gala, that she and Jeff have been as involved as they have been because it's really enabled the exhibition to come to fruition,' she raved.
The exhibition, titled Costume Art, will run from May 10, 2026, through January 10, 2027, following the Met Gala on May 4. The Met Gala is a huge money-maker for the museum and provides the Costume Institute with its main source of funding.
