Here’s Who You Won’t Be Seeing On The 2022 Met Gala Red Carpet
The first Monday in May is just a little over a week away, and if you’ve been checking DeuxMoi religiously, you might have a fairly good idea of who will be climbing those carpeted stairs in their Met Gala finest come May 2nd. Like any party, the Met Gala has its regulars (one of them, Blake Lively, is even a host this year), but we also have it on good authority that many celebrities you might expect to grace the event will not be in attendance this time around, either because of scheduling conflicts, disinterest, or, in some cases, because (allegedly) Anna Wintour won’t let them through the doors. So, in order to prepare mentally for the lack of certain stars on the red carpet next Monday night (cough cough Zendaya), study up on this list of those who are either confirmed or suspected to be missing out on this year’s gilded festivities.
Zendaya
Let’s cut right to the chase, the Met Gala princess, Zendaya, will be missing out on the event for a second year in a row. According to Page Six, the actress revealed the news at the Euphoria panel earlier this week. “I’m sorry to disappoint my fans here but I will be working,” she said “Your girl’s gotta work and make some movies. So I wish everyone the best.”
Zendaya will be filming her latest project, Challengers, directed by Call Me By Your Name’s Luca Guadagnino. Zendaya will star alongside The Crown’s Josh O’Connor and West Side Story newcomer Mike Faist in the film, which tells the story of a tennis star, turned coach, who turns her husband into a Grand Slam champion. We also assume (though can’t say for sure) that that would also mean rising menswear master O’Connor will not be in attendance either.
Luckily, Zendaya promised she will “be back eventually” and will “keep delivering in other ways” in the meantime, which we fully believe to be true. This doesn’t mean her stylist, Law Roach, will be off duty that night. He will likely still be dressing F1 star Lewis Hamilton, and possibly Zendaya’s Euphoria costar, Hunter Schafer, if she’s in attendance.
Dua Lipa
While not confirmed, it seems extremely unlikely the pop star will be able to attend the Met Gala this year, as she has a concert in her hometown London that same night. Maybe she could hop on a plane and get to New York City in time following the concert (we’re not going to bother to do the math to even figure out if that’s possible), but she has a concert in London the following night as well, so it just doesn’t seem worth it. Lipa didn’t attend last year’s Gala either, so this means we will have to continue to wait at least one more year for her return to the red carpet (likely in Versace).
Rihanna
This one is not confirmed, but it seems unlikely Rihanna will be attendance at the Met Gala this year given the fact that she’s about to give birth at any minute. Granted, if anyone would walk the carpet while fielding contractions, it’s Rihanna, but the singer is currently in Barbados, and it seems like that is probably where she will stay until she gives birth. Who knows, though, maybe next year to make up for it, she’ll bring the baby along as a plus one.
Other Artists
Like Lipa, there are other singers who may not be able to attend because of tour dates. Rina Sawayama will be performing in Toronto that night, so we will have to wait at least one more year for her Met Gala debut. Olivia Rodrigo is playing in Toronto two nights before and Boston the night after the Gala, so she could opt out just because that sounds extremely chaotic, though we guess if any event is worth it, it’s probably the Met Gala.
Demi Lovato
The singer only attended the Met Gala once, in 2016, but it seems unlikely they will ever return. Back in 2018, Lovato revealed to Billboard that they had “a terrible experience.” They went on to explain that “one celebrity was a complete bitch and was miserable to be around” and the whole event was “very cliquey.” Lovato admitted they were so “uncomfortable”, they wanted to drink, so instead they left and when to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.
Gwyneth Paltrow
The Goop founder is a bit of a wild card when it comes to the Met Gala. After attending the event back in 2013, the actress said she was “never going again” calling the evening “so un-fun,” according to USA Today. That being said, four years later, in 2017, she was back on the stairs, and even returned a third time in 2019. Maybe she was just trying to confirm (twice more) that the Met Gala really isn’t for her. She didn’t attend last year, so she may have decided she was officially done and, at this point, an appearance from GP would be pretty surprising.
Indya Moore
Moore attended the Met Gala for the first time last year, but following the event, the Pose star shared a photo from the red carpet on Instagram, announcing “this will probably be my last Met Gala.”
“I am going to think long and hard about why I came and if it is truly in alignment with what I want to accomplish in this life, the stories I want to tell and the messages I want to share,” they said. Part of this thought process had to do with the Black Lives Matter protestors who were being arrested outside the museum during the Gala. “Being at the Met this year was cognitive dissonance. I entered and left feeling confused. But before that I felt clear. Grounded. People were protesting and arrested in the name of what so many of us who attended, care deeply about. They were arrested most likely because they were perceived as a threat to those of us who were there.” They continued, criticizing the nature of the fundraiser. “We organize millions for a museum, on stolen land that Black and Brown people suffer on unless white supremacy thinks they are exceptional- but not for the people? Can't we be substantially generous in ways that alliviate suffering and poverty? I am surprised that I was invited and I am grateful for the gesture and I want us to be more sincerely thoughtful around how we take from people we do not care about, not so we can accept that truth, but so that we can grow the heart to change it.”
Tina Fey
The Saturday Night Live alum probably won’t be in attendance this year either, considering she called the event a “jerk parade” on The Late Show with David Letterman back in 2015. “You go and it’s this beautiful space and it’s just every jerk from every walk of life is there wearing, like, some stupid thing,” she said, promising she would never go again and after that interview, she probably won’t be invited.
The Allegedly Blacklisted
A few big names may want to attend the Met Gala, but allegedly can’t get past gatekeeper Anna Wintour. Tim Gunn, who attended multiple Met Galas until he was reportedly banned in 2006, is said to be on the blacklist due to his “hostile” relationship with Wintour. In 2015 he told E! News that he once gave an interview to the New York Post and told a story about Wintour getting “carried down five flights of stairs from a fashion show.” Apparently, Wintour’s office called Gunn the next day and “demanded a retraction,” which Gunn refused, and the rest is history.
Stylist Rachel Zoe is also reportedly blacklisted, and was invited to the event in 2007 only to have her invite rescinded. Wintour allegedly wasn’t happy when Zoe told the New York Times, “Anna Wintour is one of my heroes, but they say that I’m more influential.”
And while many of her family members have become regulars at the event, Khloé Kardashian has never received an invitation. According to The Sun, that’s because Wintour feels the reality star is “too C-list” for an invite. Of course, Wintour reportedly used to feel similarly about Kim Kardashian, but these days, Kim is as much of a Gala tentpole as Rihanna or Blake Lively, so things can change.
