Top Stars to Host 2026 Met Gala: Beyoncé, Venus Williams, Nicole Kidman

Nicole Kidman, Beyoncé and Venus Williams

Music superstar Beyoncé, tennis legend Venus Williams, and Oscar-winning actress Nicole Kidman will lead the 2026 Met Gala on May 4th. They will co-chair the event alongside Vogue's Anna Wintour, the Metropolitan Museum of Art announced on Wednesday in New York.

The annual Met Gala usually takes place on the first Monday in May. It started in 1948 and, for decades, was only for New York’s upper class.

Wintour, the main figure in US fashion, took charge of the event in the 1990s and turned the party into a showcase for the rich and famous.

The gala raises money for the Met’s Costume Institute. However, it is also a huge social media event where celebrities wear outrageous outfits, competing to create the biggest show.

The theme for the clothes has not been announced yet, but it will link to the “Costume Art” exhibition. This show opens on May 10th at the respected museum in Manhattan and will look at the history of the "dressed body" in art over hundreds of years.

The co-chairs are major leaders in their fields: music, sports, and film.

The gala will be the first time Beyoncé has attended in ten years, and fashion fans will be very excited to see what outfit (or outfits) she turns up in. She was an honorary co-chair back in 2013.

Williams, who is 45, has won seven Grand Slam titles and is still playing on the WTA Tour. Her sister, Serena—who has retired from tennis—co-hosted the event in 2019.

Kidman has co-chaired the event twice before (in 2003 and 2005). She has several projects coming up in 2026, including Practical Magic 2, a sequel to the popular 1998 film about a family of witches, and Scarpetta, a TV series based on Patricia Cornwell’s crime novel character.

The Met also announced a gala "host committee" led by Saint Laurent designer Anthony Vaccarello and actress Zoë Kravitz. Other members of the committee include singers Sabrina Carpenter and Doja Cat, retired ballet star Misty Copeland, and WNBA champion A’ja Wilson.