Let me set the record straight before we even start: Blake Lively does not “attend” the Met Gala. She arrives, she patinates, she occasionally changes outfits mid-staircase, and she leaves the rest of the carpet to fight for the scraps. The woman literally sat on the Met steps for years filming Gossip Girl and then decided to make them her personal runway. That is range.
She first showed up in 2008, kept showing up through 2018, vanished for a dramatic four-year stretch (queen of the cliffhanger), came back to co-chair in 2022, disappeared again, and then resurrected herself in 2026 in a way that made the entire internet drop its iced coffee. So naturally, we need to rank it. From “merely great” to “should be hanging in the Costume Institute itself,” here is every era of Blake at the Met.
1. The Statue of Liberty (2022)
Theme: “In America: An Anthology of Fashion,” dress code “Gilded Glamour.”
There was never going to be a different number one. Co-chairing alongside Ryan Reynolds, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Regina King, Blake arrived in custom Atelier Versace in gleaming copper, wrapped with an oversized satin bow at the hip.
Embed from Getty ImagesThen, in front of every photographer in Manhattan, a team untied the bow on the steps and the whole thing unfurled into a copper-to-teal ombré train, mirroring how the actual Statue of Liberty oxidized from bronze to patina green. She even swapped her copper gloves for green ones mid-reveal. “I’ve patinated,” she announced, fully aware she had just won. Untouchable.
Embed from Getty Images2. The Pastel Rococo Comeback (2026)
Theme: “Costume Art,” dress code “Fashion Is Art.”
Blake made us wait four entire years, then strolled in as Anna Wintour’s surprise guest, just hours after settling the legal battle with her It Ends With Us co-star. The gown: an archival Atelier Versace from Spring 2006, inspired by 18th-century Venetian Rococo paintings, with a corseted bodice embroidered in powder pink, peach, yellow, and lilac, melting from cream to blush to lavender across a 13-foot train.
Embed from Getty ImagesOn the carpet she described it as the color of a sunrise and a sunset, and the gown genuinely earned that. Then came the detail that finished everyone off, a custom Judith Leiber clutch hand-painted by her four kids.
3. The Ruby Bombshell (2018)
Theme: “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.”
Okay. Deep breath. This is the look people still scream about, and for very good reason. A custom Atelier Versace gown with a jewel-encrusted corset embroidered in ruby, gold, and emerald, bleeding into a deep burgundy beaded skirt and a sweeping train, reportedly clocking in at over 600 hours of work.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe topped it off with a halo-style headpiece, Louboutins, and Lorraine Schwartz jewels. Blake essentially dressed as a stained-glass cathedral window and made it look like the most natural decision on earth. If this were anyone else’s career, it would be their number one. For Blake, it’s number three.
4. The Gold Mermaid With the Blue Feathers (2017)
Theme: “Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between.”
Now we are firmly in elite territory. A gold Atelier Versace mermaid gown with draped gold beading on the bodice and an absolute waterfall of blue ombré feathers cascading down the train, finished with sapphire and gold jewelry.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe gold-to-blue color story is so good it should genuinely be classified as a controlled substance. The silhouette hugged her within an inch of its life before exploding into feathers at the floor. A mermaid who summers in the South of France and answers to absolutely no one. One of the most criminally underrated looks of her entire run.
5. The Chanel Goddess Moment (2011)
Theme: “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty.”
Strawberry-blonde Blake in an embroidered Chanel Haute Couture gown, silver detailing draped across the bodice, Christian Louboutin sandals peeking out from the hem. The muted, neutral tone playing against that warm hair color was a genuinely perfect pairing, the kind of styling decision a team either lands beautifully or fumbles completely.
Embed from Getty ImagesHers landed without a wobble. This is “descended from Mount Olympus to attend a Manhattan charity dinner and quietly show everyone up,” and I mean that as the single highest compliment I am capable of giving. Effortless, ethereal, and somehow one of her most flawless outings.
6. The Champagne Gucci Cape (2014)
Theme: “Charles James: Beyond Fashion.”
Old Hollywood Blake has officially entered the building. A champagne-colored Gucci gown drowning in intricate beading, finished with a flowing cape and a single pop of red earrings, because she understands that contrast is everything.
Embed from Getty ImagesThis was also the year she and Ryan Reynolds made their Met Gala debut as a couple, which hits completely differently now that they have four kids and a joint content empire. The gown glows under the cameras. The behind-the-scenes lore glows even harder. A look that proves she can do quiet, golden glamour just as easily as she does full spectacle.
7. The Punk Gucci (2013)
Theme: “PUNK: Chaos to Couture.”
Here is where the story gets fun. For the punk year, Blake delivered a strapless Gucci Première gown with a gray bodice and a dramatic black feather-and-organza train, paired with a heavy smoked-out eye and statement earrings.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s the edgiest she has ever gone, and the styling alone earns the placement on this list. There isn’t a single soft, sweet edge anywhere to be found, which for Blake is genuinely rare. A full villain arc in gown form.
8. The Pink Burberry Cape (2016)
Theme: “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology.”
A strapless pale-pink Burberry gown with delicate red floral detailing and a floor-length cape trailing behind her like she had somewhere extremely important to be. This is one of her softest, most romantic looks, and the cape did the bulk of the dramatic heavy lifting entirely on its own.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s proof that Blake can pull off “ethereal garden fairy who wandered in from a Renaissance painting” just as convincingly as she does “weaponized red-carpet glamour.” Not every Met look needs to scream for attention. Some of them simply need to float. This one floated all the way to the top.
9. The Cobalt Versace (2009)
Theme: “The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion.”
A one-shoulder cobalt blue Versace gown with soft draping, styled with pared-back hair and minimal jewelry so the dress stayed the focus. This was peak Gossip Girl, and the gown could have come straight out of Serena van der Woodsen’s closet, which only added to the moment at the time.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s a perfectly good early Versace moment that just doesn’t compete with the swings she’d take later at the Met. Pretty and well-executed, not a look anyone’s still talking about. A fair number nine.
10. The Debut (2008)
Theme: “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy.”
Blake’s first Met appearance was a black Ralph Lauren gown with a feathered hem, black opera gloves, and a stack of diamonds, worn on the arm of then-boyfriend and Gossip Girl co-star Penn Badgley.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe look itself is restrained and a little safe, more polished newcomer than statement, which is reasonable for a debut. A quiet, low-risk start before she worked out what she could actually pull off on this carpet, which is exactly why it lands at number ten.
11. The Lapis Marchesa Minidress (2010)
Theme: “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity.”
One of her least-discussed Met looks, and the only time she’s ever gone short. A one-shoulder lapis-blue Marchesa minidress with a ruffled floral detail, worn with sheer black heels, while most of the carpet stuck to floor-length drama.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt doesn’t say much about the year’s theme and it lacks the impact of a full gown, but the minidress is a real outlier in her Met run. Baby Blake was experimenting in real time, and frankly I respect it.
The verdict: Blake doesn’t show up to the Met every single year, but when she does, she tends to win it. The Statue of Liberty transformation is one of the most memorable looks in the event’s history, the 2018 ruby gown and the 2026 comeback sit right behind it, and even her softer years photographed beautifully. Very few people have a Met run this strong or this consistent at the top. She earned the Met Gala queen title fair and square, and the steps are hers whenever she wants them.