When it comes to red carpet fashion, Melissa Rivers isn’t one to mince words — and she’s got plenty of notes on the “confusing” Met Gala 2026 dress code, too.
“It was a difficult theme to interpret,” the “Fashion Police” alum told Page Six Style of the “Costume Art” event, noting that many celebrities opted for “traditional, pretty” dresses with Grecian draping since the the prompt — which encouraged guests to “celebrate the countless depictions of the dressed body throughout art history” — was “very hard to figure out.”
Still, the first Monday in May brought plenty of sartorial wins and more than a few “oh my Gods,” as Rivers put it. Below, the red carpet fashion expert weighs in on the best and worst looks from this year’s Met ball.
“Nailed the assignment. The molded bodysuit, even with the nipples. The dress [that was] half-on, half-off. It was art, and it was artistic. The volume and pattern of the skirt, the corset, the whole thing.”
“She looked amazing. It was skintight, it was that bone color — and again, that boob part falling open with another nipple, which makes us wonder if Skims is pushing the nipple bra that they made. I think the whole family organizes, even if they’re getting ready separately. They know a cohesive look. But [Kendall and Kylie] were two of the best.”
“In my Kardashian-Jenner [Met Gala outfit ranking], it went Kylie, Kendall, Kris, and then Kim. I knew it was sculptural, I knew it was art. I just think other people did it better. Her two little sisters lapped her. And those boobs! Hey, kids, be careful: Someone’s going to lose an eye!”
“First of all, the dress was latex. Talk about art — trying to drape latex like that, so it moves. It was completely monochromatic. The shoes were [designed] to match. It was unexpected and it was one of my first ‘wows.'”
“She got the memo. Those are film strips; she was doing a nod to Audrey Hepburn, and the film strips are actually negatives of the movie ‘Sabrina.’ Using a type of fabric — a textile — that is not traditional was [great to see]. And the creation of that [look] was amazing; if you really look at it, there’s not a bump, there’s not a crease. It was brilliant.”
“It looked like they walked around the workroom and just slapped s—t on her. Like, ‘Give me the moss out of the plant!’ ‘Does anyone have any phone chargers?’ ‘Let’s throw some stuff on the boobs!’ It looked like she was trying out to be one of the characters in ‘Wicked.’ And we expect so much from her — she always goes over the top — but this time, over the top was just a miss.”
“A Marc Jacobs intestine! Boy, it just was unattractive.”
“The actual most frightening was Sam Smith, whom I have dubbed the ‘Grim Geisha.’ If you saw that sitting at the end of your bed, you’d be like, ‘Wow, the Grim Reaper seems to be really well dressed this year.'”
“The grand finale! That dress, I mean, how did they even get her in it? Talk about nailing the assignment. And then to have Blue Ivy and Jay-Z! I mean, that’s a nice-looking family. That was worth the 10-year wait.”
“The other great-looking couple was Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union. She was in Michael Kors, and the color [was perfect], and it just looked like liquid. [Kors] is so brilliant at draping and tailoring. And then him with the no sleeves. He brought good genetics, and she brought good genetics and a phenomenal dress. And the two of them together did hit the theme!”
“Remember, she was on Blue Origin with Lauren [Sánchez Bezos]. If you look, part of the train has singe marks, so all I was thinking was, ‘Thank goodness the heat shield held up!'”
“Everybody’s raving about it, and all I saw was gay Cousin Itt.”
“She’s on such a career comeback, but the thing is, she’s too short for that dress — and I say this as someone who’s small. When you have stuff at the top and stuff at the bottom and the train and the slit … it’s a proportion thing. Certain clothes look better on tall people. And that was just a bummer.”
“I used to have a very similar shirt.”
“We know Heidi loves Halloween. And yes — art, marble, get it. But you know how they say Christmas in July? Yeah, this was Halloween in May.”
“Sometimes you take a risk and it works; this was leaning into the art, and Lisa’s [look] worked. It was beautiful underneath, and then that veil being held up by the two arms that were molds of her arms. I can’t necessarily explain why, but that worked [with the] theme.”
