The 2018 Met Gala Red Carpet Ranked Best To Worst

The Met Gala red carpet proved, yet again, to be a jaw-dropping event as celebrities from artistic, political, and entertainment spheres gathered to celebrate fashion. Stars showed off their style for the cameras as they gathered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018, for Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour's annual Costume Institute Gala. Co-chairs were Amal Clooney, Rihanna, and Donatella Versace, and the theme was "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination." The event did not disappoint, serving up some stunning looks and, of course, a few controversial ensembles.

While some celebs opted for simple outfits, wearing sleek numbers in regal reds and golds or Vatican yellows, others decided to make a statement with their look of the night, donning intricate designs and halo-inspired headpieces. However, not all Hollywood A-listers won over converts with their divine red carpet styles. Below are the best and the worst dressed celebrities at the 2018 Met Gala.

There's no denying that Rihanna won the title of best dressed at the 2018 Met Gala red carpet. Though she wasn't the only celebrity to serve up a bold look, she's the only star who truly hit the event with a super on-theme ensemble that was also somehow totally her own. The "Diamonds" singer opted to wear a silver pope-like design, donning an ornate papal mitre — a ceremonial headdress typically worn by bishops (via People). She also wore a matching strapless mini dress and an oversized robe, both featuring detailed beading. As noted by Harper's Bazaar, her entire look was designed by Margiela.

The most noteworthy element of Rihanna's style, however, was her ability to rock the surely heavy garments with ease, giving her entire ensemble an effortlessly cool vibe that others, try as they might, could never hope to emulate. Rihanna just wins the fashion game every time.

Katy Perry hit the red carpet with her biggest fashion statement yet — a pair of huge feathered wings. And we do mean huge. The American Idol judge had to be driven to the event in the backseat of white vintage convertible, as she and her plumage would not have fit in any ordinary car (via Teen Vogue). As for the rest of her look, Perry donned a long-sleeve gold mini dress with a chainmail-like overlay that was designed by Versace. Rocking her blonde pixie 'do, Perry paired the outfit with a pair of thigh-high gold boots.

In her Instagram Story, the pop star told her followers that she also had with her one very special accessory — rosary beads that had been blessed by Pope Francis, whom she'd met with boyfriend Orlando Bloom at the Vatican in April 2018 (via E! News). 

Though Perry is never one to pass up an occasion to wear an unusual costume, the 2018 Met Gala may have had more personal significance for the star than past years, considering Perry grew up in a religious household with two evangelical ministers as parents (via the Daily Beast). Perhaps her fallen angel costume is a not-so-subtle nod at the distance traveled from her past as a strict Christian?

Many celebrities walked the 2018 Met Gala red carpet in dresses inspired by catholic royalty, wearing ornate gowns and crowns. Mindy Kaling, Emilia Clarke, and Blake Lively all looked gorgeous, but none could top rapper Cardi B's look. Donning a crystal-covered Moschino design, Cardi B, who is pregnant with her first child with fiancé Offset, absolutely stunned on the red carpet. She showed off her growing baby bump while walking alongside designer Jeremy Scott, who wore a matching outfit (via People). Her dress appears to have been inspired by the robes worn by members of the clergy, but with a regal spin, of course, as emphasized by the gown's long train. Though the dress itself was beautiful, it was Cardi B's intricate headdress that really put her entire look miles ahead of other Met Gala attendees. 

Cardi B's arrival at the 2018 Met Gala marked the artist's very first Met Gala, and, given her on-theme style, we can all but guarantee that the New York-native will be welcomed back to the event in the future.

For her Met Gala look, Zendaya channeled historical figure Joan of Arc, and she looked good doing it. Wearing a silver beaded gown with layered metal pieces on her shoulders, chest, and waist, the Greatest Showman star appeared ready for battle on the red carpet in a design that resembled chainmail and armor. But while some may have stopped at the statement-making gown, which was custom Versace, Zendaya kept going, polishing off her look with several rings and a necklace, as noted by WWD. She also took her style to another level by donning a shorter 'do and a totally new hair color, debuting a curly red bob with blunt bangs (via Teen Vogue).

Of her red carpet style, Zendaya's stylist, Law Roach, told WWD, "[Zendaya] loves drama," adding, "When you have someone who thrives off it, who loves it, who's addicted to fashion, we can go drama."

Well, Zendaya's look was definitely dramatic — and it couldn't have been better.

Jennifer Lopez showed up at the 2018 Met Gala with boyfriend Alex Rodriguez, but it was clear from the moment she stepped onto the red carpet that she wasn't there just to be somebody's date. Oh no. Jenny from the Block dressed to impress, wearing a black Balmain dress with exquisite embroidery and, specifically, a blue and red cross on her chest (via Us Weekly). The breathtaking gown also featured a high slit, which put the singer's legs — or, rather, leg — on full display, and a long feathered train. Lopez made the smart move of keeping her makeup and hair simple and wearing elegant Tiffany & Co diamond earrings and black high heels, allowing her dress to snag all the attention.

According to E! News, Lopez's gown and Rodriguez's black Balmain suit will both be auctioned off for charity in partnership with (RED) in an effort to raise funds for the fight against AIDS.

While some celebrities opted for gowns that transformed them into queens for the night, Nicki Minaj went in a different direction. Reacting to comments about her "seductress" look, the rapper, who interestingly enough announced that she has an album called Queen coming out in June 2018, told press that she was dressed as the "bad guy," noting that she "wanted to make sure that the bad guy was here." 

We're not sure if Minaj was aiming to throw shade at Cardi B, with whom she'd reportedly had drama after collaborating on "Motorsport" (via Hollywood Life), but Minaj certainly looked the part of a sinner.

The rapper wore a burgundy Oscar de la Renta gown that boasted a plunging neckline with a cape and long train. She added to the look with bold red and black Tiffany & Co jewelry and a beaded headpiece featuring multiple dangling crosses. While the gown certainly showed ties to religion, the entire look failed to make a stylish statement on the carpet, instead simply masking Minaj in a sea of red.

Is anyone 100 percent positive that actress and model Cara Delevingne actually showed up to the 2018 Met Gala red carpet? Because we definitely didn't get a good look at her. Delevingne — who, let's face it, could wear anything and look gorgeous — found the one style that didn't work for her at all: a sheer black Dior dress with a net-like pattern and a black Marianna Harutunian headpiece and veil that totally hid her face (via Just Jared).

Delevingne also somehow managed to make her Met Gala look worse by sporting bright yellow eyeshadow, which was pretty much the only makeup choice we could make out through the model's veil (via the Daily Mail). One thing we did like about Delevingne's red carpet style? Her cotton candy pink hair. Alas, her pastel locks weren't enough to save Delevingne from snagging a spot as one of the night's worst dressed stars.

Having played fashion risk-taker Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City for six seasons, Sarah Jessica Parker definitely picked up on her character's penchant for over-the-top styles. However, not all bold fashion moves pan out. Such was the case for SJP's 2018 Met Gala red carpet look, which was so extravagant that it seemed fated to fail from the beginning. Parker, who took Watch What Happens Live host Andy Cohen as her date, wore a gold long-sleeved Dolce & Gabbana gown that featured intricate embroidery, layered shoulder pieces, and red heart details throughout — not to mention a crazy long train (via People). But the Met Gala look was made all the more insane by Parker's matching headpiece, which stood tall and depicted the entire nativity scene. And somehow, she still found room on her head for a flower arrangement, too.

While Parker for sure gets points for sticking to the event's Catholicism theme, her whole look was just too much. In this case, Parker didn't wear the outfit — the outfit wore her.

Whereas Zendaya rocked a Joan of Arc-inspired ensemble, Big Little Lies star Shailene Woodley, well, didn't. Instead, the actress appeared robotic in an ill-fitting silver leather mini dress with a high collar and stud detailing. Woodley made the entire ill-fitting outfit, which was a custom Ralph Lauren creation, look even more stiff with a high ponytail and metallic over-the-knee boots (via Just Jared). 

We'd hated to diss a gown that took more than 50 hours to make at the hands of 12 artisans, but there's just no excusing this total dud of a design. The Daily Mail said it best when it compared Woodley's 2018 Met Gala outfit to the look of the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz, "thanks to its armor-esque shape and silver metallic finish."

At least Woodley got to reunite with her Divergent and The Fault in Our Stars co-star Ansel Elgort on the red carpet (via E! News). Who doesn't love seeing castmates reunite?

Frances McDormand made quite a statement on the 2018 Met Gala red carpet, but, unfortunately, it wasn't a good one. The Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri star turned heads and dropped jaws in a chartreuse gown by Pierpaolo Piccioli, a turquoise Valentino cape, and, most notably, a bold headpiece designed by Philip Treacy, as noted by People magazine. 

While wearing a headpiece to the gala is nothing new — in fact, it was a popular choice at the 2018 event — McDormand's didn't exactly follow the night's theme ... whatsoever. Rather than reflect religious fashion from centuries past, McDormand's huge teal topper nearly hid her entire head and appeared to resemble florals (via the Daily Mail).

Something tells us that McDormand didn't exactly take the Met Gala seriously, as she had fun with photographers, posing with her hip out and a hand held casually off to her side. Still, the Oscar-winning actress' look — and its apparent dismissal of the event's theme — cemented her place as one of the night's worst dressed stars on the red carpet.