Sydney Sweeney made a dramatic entrance at the 2025 Met Gala on Monday night (May 5), but her red carpet moment elicited mixed reactions across social media, with many fans accusing her stylist of missing the mark.
The Euphoria star turned heads in a dark, form-fitting gown inspired by Kim Novak’s costume in the 1968 film The Legend of Lylah Clare.
Highlights
- Sydney Sweeney’s 2025 Met Gala gown drew mixed reviews, with many calling it lazy and theme-inappropriate.
- Her dress was inspired by inspired by Kim Novak’s costume in the 1968 film The Legend of Lylah Clare.
- Critics argued the outfit missed the theme, particularly due to the race of both the actress and designer being referenced.
Originally designed by legendary costume designer Gilbert Adrian for Joan Crawford in the 1930s and later adapted for Novak, the gown carries decades of Old Hollywood history, fitting for the night’s focus on early twentieth-century fashion.
“It’s giving vintage elegance,” one user wrote. “But where’s the drama? Where’s the theme?”
“I feel like her stylist let her down,” another said.
Some netizens believe Sidney Sweeney's stylist "did her dirty" with her 2025 Met Gala look
Image credits: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
As Bored Panda previously reported, this year’s Met Gala theme, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, was drawn from Monica L. Miller’s book Slaves to Fashion, a book that celebrates a movement known as “Black dandyism” and its historical ties to emancipation-era tailoring and Harlem Renaissance aesthetics.
Image credits: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
The theme emphasized sharp silhouettes, and reimagined historical outfits with a distinctly Black cultural lens, while at the same time emphasizing fluidity between masculine and feminine fashion.
Many attendees leaned into more extravagant, androgynous interpretations of tailoring, opting for sharply structured suits and voluminous layers.
At the same time, others surprised viewers with sharp color-contrasting ensembles and getups that would not look out of place in a futuristic or modern fantasy movie.
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In contrast, Sweeney’s look, while labeled by some netizens as “undeniably beautiful,” was seen by some as disconnected from the night’s deeper narrative, particularly due to the race of both the actress being referenced, and the outfit's original designer.
“Not theme-appropriate,” one critic posted. “Her stylist did her dirty,” another said.
Despite the creative and intricate outfits on display, the event has drawn criticism from all sides
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Beyond Sweeney’s dress, criticism of the event as a whole was swift and unrelenting. Many online declared the 2025 Met Gala “the most boring one ever,” despite the extravagance on display.
"This year just lacked the ‘wow’ factor,” one user wrote, an opinion that stood in contrast to some of the more creative looks unveiled this year, such as Demi Moore’s now infamous business tie-inspired dress.
Image credits: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Some political voices even weighed in. Conservative commentator Megyn Kelly criticized the event’s planning and theme, accusing the organizers of “black tokenism” and “hyper-pandering,” calling the gala “more performative than celebratory.”
Guest curator Monica L. Miller, on the other hand, described the event as an exploration of “dandyism as both a pronouncement and a provocation” and said that the focus was on exploring the complex link between fashion, race, class, sexuality, and power.
"Where's the Black excellence?" Netizens labeled Sweeney's dress as not being "theme-appropriate."
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