Glitz, glamour, protest: Met Gala sparks calls for boycott over Jeff Bezos takeover

By David Mouriquand Published on 04/05/2026 - 13:41 GMT+2•Updated 14:14 Share Comments Share Facebook Twitter Flipboard Send Reddit Linkedin Messenger Telegram VK Bluesky Threads Whatsapp

The Met Gala faces controversy, with huge names said to be skipping tonight’s event over the involvement of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren Sánchez.

The fantastical dresses... The expensive jewellery... The celebrity glitz... The gorgeous glamour... The Bezos boycott.

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This year’s Met Gala takes place tonight, as per the tradition of being held on the first Monday in May. The 2026 event has “Costume Art” as its main theme, with the dress code for the gala being “Fashion Is Art”.

How delightfully vague.

Hundreds of A-list guests will be there for fashion's biggest night of the year, which raises money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute. Anna Wintour, Met Gala chair and global editorial director of Vogue, has enlisted Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman and Venus Williams to serve as the evening's co-chairs this year.

However, some stars will be avoiding this year’s event, as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren Sanchez Bezos are co-chairs and sponsors.

Anna Wintour is said to have received at least $10 million from Bezos, per The Times, and the Guardian reminds that there have been rumours swirling regarding Bezos reportedly seeking to buy Condé Nast, the parent company of Vogue, which oversees the gala.

This has led to calls for a boycott, with posters popping up near the New York museum urging attendees to “boycott the Bezos Met Gala”. Some posters read: “Bezos Met Gala: Brought to you by the firm that powers ICE”.

Several A-listers are said to be skipping the seemingly unskippable event, including Meryl Streep, who appears on the cover of the May issue of American Vogue and plays Miranda Priestly - a role inspired by Wintour herself - in The Devil Wears Prada 2. The legendary actress is said to have turned down a co-hosting role this year because of Bezos and Sánchez’s involvement.

Other stars said to be missing the event include Zohran Mamdani, breaking the tradition of New York mayors attending, as well as Zendaya.

Companies including OpenAI, Meta, and Snapchat have bought up seats this year, with Meta billionaire Mark Zuckerberg rumoured to be attending for the first time.

Individual tickets cost $100,000, up from last year’s $75,000. Tables cost upwards of around $350,000. However, few celebrities actually pay for their own tickets.

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'Fashion is art' Met Gala 2026 sets dress code for celebrity event