While we definitely saw some stunning looks at the 2023 Met Gala, we couldn’t help but notice the absence of some of the fashion night’s iconic regulars. Instead, it was mostly new faces debuting on VOGUE’s red carpet, paying tribute to the man, the legend, the icon, Karl Lagerfeld.
At this years Met Gala, Editor-in-Chief at VOGUE, Anna Wintour, chose to honour Karl Lagerfeld, the fashion designer and former Chanel creative director, who died in 2019. The Gala’s theme was decided in celebration of the Met’s Costume Institute’s current fashion exhibit, “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”, which has opened to the public following the event.
Welcoming Roger Federer, Michaela Coel, Penélope Cruz, and Dua Lipa as her co-chairs at this years event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Anna Wintour definitely made it an unmissable year. However, it seems some celebs didn’t get the memo.
A-lister celebrities such as Blake Lively, Harry Styles, and Bella Hadid were all MIA at this years event. But this isn’t even half the list of missing celebs.
Kris Jenner
The Kardashian-Jenner girls don’t usually go anywhere without their ‘momager’ too far behind, but this years Met Gala showed us that these girls can still walk a red carpet without their mum waiting for them at the top.
So while the reason for Kris’ absence has not been confirmed, we’re guessing she stayed back with her grand-babies. Who knows, maybe her next generation of billionaires are in the works.
Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner
This absence left fans particularly disappointed as Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner’s presence at this year’s event was highly anticipated. The power-couple definitely turned heads at the 2022 Met Gala in their matching Louis Vuitton fits, so it makes sense that all their fans were waiting for their arrival this year.
And the fact that neither Joe or Sophie shared their reason for not attending, left us all on a major cliffhanger – I mean, Sophie showed up last year pregnant with the pairs second child, so we have no idea what was keeping them from the carpet this year.
However, the appearance of his brother, Nick Jonas, accompanied by his wife, Priyanka Chopra, kind of made up for it!
Blake Lively
This hurt the most. While the queen of the carpet announced she wouldn’t be in attendance at the Met Gala this year, that doesn’t mean that her absence was any less traumatising. Personally, Blake Lively and her inability to be off-theme is the main interest we have in the Met Gala, so luckily for us, Blake did have an extremely valid excuse.
In an interview with People Magazine, Blake Lively, to the surprise of many, announced that, due to family commitments, she and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, would be skipping this years Gala. The assumption that this is due to the recent birth of their fourth child.
However, Blake was invited to attend the reopening of Tiffany & Co. Fifth Avenue in New York City, where she admitted “I will be watching,” and when complimented on her 2022 Met Gala look, she replied, “I’ll be wearing that on my couch on Monday.”
Beyoncé and Jay-Z
Best believe we watched the whole event from the comfort of our living room, but still, we did not see a single glimpse of Queen B or her second half. This could be because neither Bey nor Jay-Z were in attendance at this years Met Gala. While neither pop-sensations disclosed where they were during this annual fashion event, her recent activities on social media, suggest her absence was due to her upcoming tour.
Beyoncé’s latest Instagram post saw her alongside Balmain’s acting creative director, Olivier Rousteing, where the designing of a Renaissance Couture collection was in formation, pun-intended of course!
Fans have connected this to the release of her record-breaking Renaissance album, and upcoming accompanying tour.
Sarah Jessica Parker
This years Met took another beating with the absence of fashion icon herself, Sarah Jessica Parker, otherwise known as New York City’s very own fictional fashionista, Carrie Bradshaw.
While Sarah Jessica Parker was another star that failed to mention what persuaded her decision not to attend, we’ve gathered that it has something to do with the next season of “And Just Like That…”
Meghan Markle
Of course it would be totally out of protocol for a royal to attend the Met Gala, but based of Meghan Markle’s track record, this didn’t stop rumours spreading about the potential appearance of the Duchess of Sussex at the 2023 Met Gala.
However, after her failure to attend, it is clear that this princess is not red carpet ready and is prolonging her debut at this annual celebration of fashion. Although, we never got confirmation that she was even invited, so her absence remains a mystery.
Lady Gaga
Yes, it’s been four years since we last saw Lady Gaga walk the carpet, but this didn’t stop fans from eagerly awaiting her fashion comeback – and it’s understandable why. This star is definitely known for her openness when it comes to experimenting with fashion, and as a result, has encouraged us all to be comfortable in expressing our individuality through our wardrobe.
The star’s last Met Gala appearance was in 2019, but her reason for not attending the past four years is completely valid. While Lady Gaga is always working on new projects, such as filming her movie musical sequel, ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’, and launching a new beauty line, her decision to pause her attendance to the Met was mainly due to her desire to have “a life of solitude,” as she told Wallpaper Magazine last month.
I guess the Met Gala is a bit too chaotic for this triple-threat.
Harry Styles
Anyone else wait hours for the arrival of fashion’s most loved One-Directioner? Don’t worry, we’re with you. And can confirm – we’re devastated he skipped this years carpet.
Harry Styles is yet another loved star who didn’t attend 2023’s Met Gala and we have no idea why. However, due to the fact that he is still on tour, it can be justified as to why he missed the event. And considering how amazing his “Love On Tour” concert is, we can find it in our Harry Styles-filled hearts to forgive him.
Last appearing on the carpet in 2019, where he made his debut, Harry Styles definitely made our jaws drop, making it harder and harder every year we don’t get to witness his red carpet takeover.
As per Nine Style, “the singer is not one to shy away from making a statement, becoming a boundary-pushing fashion force over the years, causing fans to anticipate his arrival on the red carpet.”
Kaia Gerber
Considering her extravagant look at the 2022 Met Gala, the absence of Kaia Gerber came as quite a shock to all.
It’s unclear why Kaia Gerber and boyfriend, Austin Butler chose to skip fashion’s biggest night, but we do know that this would’ve been their second Met Gala appearance as a couple – and based on the cuteness overload we witnessed last year, this duo’s absence was unquestionably disappointing.
Bella Hadid
This years Met Gala only saw one of the iconic Hadid sisters walk the red carpet. While we were all stunned by Gigi Hadid in a sheer black corset dress, her sister was no where to be seen, despite rumours that she would be attending.
Bella’s activity on instagram the morning of the Gala only lead these rumours on. According to ELLE Magazine, the Hadid sister reposted a photo taken by Lagerfeld that Gigi had shared to her Instagram Story. The picture sees both Gigi and Bella fashioning Fendi looks. Bella captioning, “we love you @karllagerfeld.” Yet, the model has failed to addressed her absence from this years Met Gala.
Zendaya
Despite speculation that Zendaya and Tom Holland would be at this year’s Met Gala, officially debuting their relationship on the red carpet, neither appeared on the night.
Their absence is disappointing to fans but understandable, particularly for Zendaya, given how far away she was from New York City. Her last public appearance was in Las Vegas for CinemaCon. So, due to her attendance to CinemaCon’s Dune: Part 2 presentation, alongside Timothee Chamalet (which could also explain his absence from the Gala) is a completely forgivable reason for missing the carpet this year.
Hailey Bieber
Whether it was the recent drama between Hailey Bieber and Selena Gomez, or work obligations that led Hailey to skip this year’s carpet, we are still trying to cope with her absence. Hailey Bieber is definitely a star that never fails to show up on-theme and blow fans away while doing so.
The only lead we have on her disappearance from the carpet, is an unverified screenshot from her social media, that implies her absence might have something to do with her decision to focus on work.
But considering neither Hailey, Selena or Justin were in attendance to this iconic event, our investigation will certainly continue past an unverified screenshot!
Law Roach
The absence of the iconic celebrity stylist, Law Roach came as no shock to anyone considering, amidst his retirement earlier this year, confirmed to The Cut that his decision to step away from the fashion industry includes stepping away from fashion events, including the Met Gala.
As per the words of Law himself, “I feel so free, I feel a freedom that I don’t remember ever feeling. And no matter what, if I come back, which I don’t have plans on coming back —,” whereby The Cut editor-in-chief, Lindsay Peoples, intervened to ask: “So no Met Gala?” Followed by his confirming, “No Met Gala.”
Choupette Lagerfeld
Despite the urgency from fans for Karl Lagerfeld’s beloved cat, Choupette, to walk the carpet in honour of him, his people took to his official Instagram to confirm that he would, in fact, not be in attendance.
“Many people invited me to walk the red carpet of the #METGALA2023 in tribute to Daddy, but we preferred to stay peacefully & cozy at home,” the post read.
While this absence came as quite a disappointment to many, we think Jared Leto’s Choupette-inspired outfit made us all feel a bit better.
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Until we meet again, Ciao Bella xo