Zendaya scowls into the lenses of paparazzi on the Met Gala carpet. 2024 was Zendaya’s first year co-chairing the Met as she hadn’t attended the red carpet spectacle in five years. (Courtesy Getty Images)

The annual Met Gala is a celebration of art that brings out some of the best names in fashion to design showstopping looks for some of the most well-known celebrities in the world. The woman behind the show, Anna Wintour, chooses a uniquely themed dress code each year which attendees are supposed to follow. This year’s theme was “Garden of Time.” While what goes on within the four walls of the Met is virtually unknown to the public, the main attraction that pulls in viewers is the infamous red carpet stairs.

The Met themes are usually broad categories that the attendees and their designers can interpret to encourage diversity and creativity on the carpet. While very few people followed this year’s theme, some of the looks that were showcased on the carpet were drop-dead gorgeous while others made viewers want to drop-dead.

The best look this year was Zendaya’s fairy-tale villain dress, which was designed by Maison Margiela Artisanal. After not attending the Met for the past five years, Zendaya was the definition of red-carpet-ready. Zendaya wore a one-shouldered royal blue and emerald-green fit-and-flare dress, wrapped in a blue tool. Pieces of fruit matching her color scheme rested on her hip and arm, adding a three-dimensional element to her look. Her makeup featured smoky red eyeshadow and a bold lip teetering on the line between black and red.

Zendaya’s long-time stylist, Law Roach, perfectly pieced this outfit together with little embellishments, tying in the “Garden of Time” theme with Zendaya’s own personal style. The key to this outfit wasn’t what Zendaya wore, but it was her body language which she radiated into her photos. Her slight bend at the waist and blazing stare into the audience tied this look’s dark, villain theme together.

While Zendaya’s outfit was a work of art, the majority of attendees could not compare. Attending his first Met, Irish actor Andrew Scott, arrived wearing a classy Versace suit. Scott strutted down the carpet in a black tank top with a black vest resting atop his shoulders. On the bottom, he wore simple black dress pants and dress shoes. He wore an accent gold necklace and brooches from the Boucheron 1948 and 1956 private collections.

There was little to no originality in Scott’s outfit, not to mention his lack of connection to the Met’s theme. While there is an art within simplicity, there was no element to this outfit that was eye-catching. This outfit is a clear example of the trick that hi

gh-end brands play on customers. They slap their names onto an average piece of clothing and suddenly it becomes magnificent.

All in all, the Met Gala red carpet should be a time for celebrities to share their artistic sides and get creative with their outfits. As one of the most prestigious invites to receive in Hollywood, it’s only a waste if attendees don’t stay on theme and go all out for their looks.