Gwyneth Paltrow has never been one to mince words, and her feelings about the Met Gala are no different.
The actress and Goop founder, 53, has opened up about her complicated history with fashion’s biggest night out, and made clear exactly which kind of guest she’ll always be.
Writing on Goop, Paltrow shared her all-time favourite red carpet looks, including two from the annual event. But before diving into the fashion, she set the scene: “I have sort of a love-hate relationship with the Met Ball.”
It’s a feeling that dates back further than she may care to admit.
Back in 2013, Paltrow told USA Today she was “never going again,” describing the night as “so un-fun,” “boiling” and “too crowded.”
Evidently, she got over it, she returned in 2017 and attended again in 2019.
That 2019 appearance, in a yellow chiffon Chloé gown, is one she looks back on fondly. She spoke warmly about collaborating with then-creative director Natacha Ramsay-Levi and said she loved the opportunity to work with a female designer.
The theme that year was Camp: Notes on Fashion, which produced some of the most outrageous looks the event has ever seen, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry both leaning fully into the spectacle.
Paltrow did not.
“I’m never going to the Met Ball in like, a hot dog costume or whatever, you know?” she said plainly.
“I always have to be myself, first and foremost. Like, I’m not going in a costume; I’m going in a dress. There’s two camps who go to the Met Ball, the costume or the evening dress. And I’m always going to be an evening dress person.”
Of the Chloé gown itself, she was almost poetic, describing it as “so light and comfortable and chiffon-y and dreamy,” like “a lemon chiffon pie.”
