The Met Gala announces its 2025 theme and co-chairs, including Lewis Hamilton

We looked the camp straight in the eye, explored the celestial bodies of Catholic aesthetics and visited the Garden of Time.

The first Monday in May is the biggest night on the fashion calendar; an exclusive and lavish haute couture fundraiser hosted by Vogue’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

And as celebrities take to the steps of The Met, it gives the rest of us mere mortals a chance to play the ultimate game of honk or boot.

We’ve all seen it: Doja Cat as a, well, cat; Jarod Leto with a replica of his own head in his hands; Gaga’s 16-minute four-in-one ensemble; and everything from the iconic Zendaya x Law Roach collaboration.

Today, the Met’s Costume Institute announced next year’s exhibition and thus next year’s theme, as well as its co-chairs.

Here’s everything we know.

What is the 2025 Met Gala theme?

The 2025 Met Gala theme is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” in line with the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition of the same name.

The theme is inspired by Monica L Miller’s 2009 book Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.

The exhibition will present “a cultural and historical examination of the black dandy,” according to a statement from the Met.

“Fashion and clothing have been used in a struggle for power and aesthetics for black people from the time of slavery to the present,” Miller said in a video statement from the Met.

“The history of black dandyism illustrates how black people have been transformed from slaves and stylized as luxuries, acquired like any other marker of wealth and status, to autonomous, self-shaping individuals who are global trendsetters,” she added.

Sydney-based model Samuel Barrie praised the Met Gala for exploring the “rich history of sartorial traditions” that “shaped and continues to shape men’s fashion.”

The artist, model and actor said his heart was “full of joy” knowing that menswear, especially from the African diaspora, would be on display.

“The black man is given the space to assert his identity in fashion,” he said.

He said he hoped attendees would embrace and delve into the evening’s themes.

“I believe there is a blurred line between embracing and respecting culture, versus appropriating it without understanding the importance of history,” he said.

Theme marks 20 years since the last focus on menswear

The theme also marks the first time in two decades that the Met Gala has focused exclusively on menswear (the last was the 2003 “Bravehearts: Men in Skirts” gala).

Costume Institute curator Andrew Bolton said menswear has undergone “something of a renaissance” in recent years.

“At the forefront of this revitalization is a group of extremely talented Black designers who continually challenge normative identity categories,” he said.

“While their styles are both unique and distinctive, what unites them is their reliance on distinct tropes rooted in the tradition of dandyism, and black dandyism in particular.”

And with that, here is the list of hosts, which might make sense now…

Who is co-hosting the 2025 Met Gala?

Each year, Anna Wintour carefully selects a group of celebrities who will serve as co-chairs and help launch the museum exhibition.

This time that honor goes to Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton, Colman Domingo, A$AP Rocky and LeBron James.

Seven-time Formula 1 champion Hamilton said he developed his own style later in life after years of being “forced to conform”.

“As the only black kid on the circuit, there was no one like me to look up to,” he said.

“I know the power of representation and how fashion can be a tool to advance diversity and celebrate our differences.

“I’m excited to celebrate black history.”

When does the Met Gala take place?

The first Monday in May, duh.

That means it will fall on May 5, 2025 next year.

And with that we wait.