The TIME100 Gala turned 20 this year, parked itself at Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 23, let Nikki Glaser host (and roast – Katy Perry, Hailey Bieber, Victoria Beckham and MrBeast all caught hands), and handed the mic to Coco Jones and Luke Combs for the performances. The thing about this carpet is it’s a different animal than the Grammys or the Met – it’s Olympians and supermodels and actors and one K-pop superstar all crammed into the same room, which means the dress code is essentially “whatever influence looks like on you.”
This year that meant a LOT of capes, a corset arms race, and one Valentino gown held together by what appeared to be dental floss and faith. These are the 15 looks that actually understood the assignment.
1. Dakota Johnson in Valentino
Dakota – Valentino ambassador, Alessandro Michele muse, professional carpet menace – wore his Fall 2026 “Interferenze” gown, a cream Grecian column held together by what is essentially two delicate strings. The draped bodice melts into a floor-length cape fastened by an ornate sequin-feather collar that trails behind her like she’s exiting a Renaissance painting mid-sentence.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe finished it with diamond-encrusted snake-detail heels, Roberto Coin jewels, Kate Young styling, and her signature feathered bangs. Was the internet split on the low-slung bodice? Sure. Do I care? Absolutely not. This is a woman who has spent a career in barely-there gowns evolving into full theatrical drama. Stunning.
2. Kate Hudson in Khaite
Stop everything: Kate Hudson did severe and I have never been more invested. The boho-Goldie-glow queen swapped her usual soft hues (and reportedly her longtime stylist) for a black Khaite Fall 2026 dress that hit below the knee with a plunging neckline, sculpted built-in cape-sleeves, black leather gloves, tights, and gold accessories.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s a hard pivot and it absolutely lands – minimalism with an actual point of view, which is the only kind worth doing. The gloves are doing villain-origin-story work and I support them completely. Watching someone known for one lane bolt into another and nail it? That’s the entire reason I do this.
3. Hailey Bieber in Calvin Klein
Hailey understands the assignment better than almost anyone working a carpet right now, and this custom Calvin Klein Collection gown was a quiet stunner – a lilac-and-silver floral lace column pulled straight from the spirit of the house’s Spring/Summer 1992 archive.
Embed from Getty ImagesSheer, slinky, ’90s-supermodel coded, the kind of dress that rewards you for standing still and letting it work. If I had one note it’s that she played it a little cool for a gown with this much heritage in it – this thing wanted a chin lift and a slow turn. But the dress itself? Archive-fashion catnip and I’ve thought about it daily since. Lilac is HER color and she knows it.
4. Chloe Kim in Wiederhoeft
The Olympic snowboarder fresh off a silver medal traded the halfpipe for a pink sequin Wiederhoeft and looked completely at home doing it. Fashion girlies will clock that this exact gown has done the rounds – Annabelle Wallis wore it first at the 2025 Golden Globes – and we’ve now seen the silhouette in red, gold, and pink, but on Chloe it felt brand new, all glitter and grin. Tiffany & Co. jewels sealed it.
Embed from Getty ImagesThere’s something deeply satisfying about an athlete who shows up to a fashion crowd and out-charms half of them. Repeat gown, zero notes, full marks for the energy.
5. Anok Yai in Ashi Studio
The reigning Model of the Year showed up and turned the carpet into a runway, as is her legal right. This Ashi Studio Spring 2026 Couture gown in glossy green crocodile-effect texture was sculpted, carved, and flared into a silhouette that looked almost wet under the lights – the kind of dress that photographs like liquid metal.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe kept the styling clean (matching pointed-toe pumps, Marli jewels, sleek hair) because when the dress is doing THAT, you get out of its way. It’s the rare look where the gown and the woman meet exactly in the middle and neither one blinks. A genuine stop-the-carpet moment.
6. Keke Palmer in Wiederhoeft
Keke is usually the archival-pull girl, so seeing her in a current Wiederhoeft Spring 2026 – black satin and velvet, corseted, with a sharp center-front slit – was a fun pivot that still somehow read like one of her vintage finds.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe woman could wear a paper bag and convince you it was couture, and the Grown Brilliance jewels added exactly the right amount of shine. The corset arms race on this carpet was REAL and hers was among the most wearable, least costume-y of the bunch. Effortless main-character energy, as per usual.
7. Hilary Duff in Anna October
Lizzie McGuire grew up and discovered Ukrainian minimalism, and I am HERE for the arc. This sheer, embellished Anna October Spring 2026 cape dress floated around her like she was being delivered by fog machine, and yes – the cape trend was inescapable this year, but hers was one of the prettier executions.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Kinn Studio ring kept the jewelry quiet so the fabric could do the talking. Some people thought the sleeves were restrictive; I thought she looked like a very expensive ghost in the best way. Soft, ethereal, and a genuine surprise from someone we don’t see on these carpets enough.
8. Jennie in Schiaparelli
The only K-pop artist on the list (with an essay written by Gracie Abrams, no less) walked in wearing Schiaparelli straight off Daniel Roseberry’s Fall 2026 runway and the room rearranged itself around her. A plunging, body-contouring bodice cinched with a skinny black leather belt, a sheer mesh panel feeding into a long black velvet skirt – sculptural in that way Schiaparelli does where the dress looks engineered rather than sewn.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe grounded it with Casadei’s knife-thin satin pumps, Swadesh drop earrings, and a slicked bun so severe it could cut glass. This is a woman who treats every carpet like it’s the Met. The discipline! The restraint! The belt!
9. Nikki Glaser in Andrew Kwon
She hosted, she roasted half the guest list, and she did it in a soft draped white Andrew Kwon gown that proved she can throw the punchlines AND take the photos. After making history at the Globes, Nikki has quietly figured out the formula: clean, columnar, no competing with the jokes.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe gown lets her work the room without the dress doing stand-up of its own. It’s a host’s look – present, polished, never upstaging the monologue. Smartest styling decision in the building, honestly.
10. Natasha Lyonne in LaQuan Smith
Only Natasha could wear a structural bra-top moment and make it feel like a personality rather than a stunt. This LaQuan Smith look leaned all the way into her downtown, throaty, Poker Face energy – the bra detail is genuinely architectural and she wore it with the confidence of a woman who has never once asked if a look is “too much.”
Embed from Getty ImagesRolling up with Anderson .Paak only added to the unbothered cool-kid-table vibe. Is it for everyone? No. Is it extremely her? Completely. I respect a woman who refuses to dress like the rest of the room.
11. Zoe Saldaña in Givenchy
The woman got recognized as the highest-grossing film actor of all time and dressed accordingly. This Givenchy by Sarah Burton Fall 2026 black velvet number could have been a snooze LBD, but the sweeping bow draping and ribbon embroidery push it somewhere far more deliberate – soft drama, structured restraint.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe matching Givenchy bow clutch and pompom T-bar sandals are the kind of styling detail I’d notice from space, plus Cartier doing the heavy lifting at the ears. After a slightly meh week in Milan, this was the cohesive, locked-in version of Zoe. Velvet in spring is a power move and she knows it.
12. Isan Elba in Rebecca Vallance
Idris Elba’s daughter is building her own fashion résumé and this was a statement entry. A liquid-red Rebecca Vallance gown with long sleeves, a softly draped crossover neckline, and a gathered waist pinched with a little metallic accent – sleek where it needed to be, dramatic where it counted.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe waved bob tucked behind the ears and a maroon lip did the rest. The color alone did half the work and she did the other half. This is how you walk a carpet built for icons and act like you belong (because she does).
13. Coco Jones in Richard Quinn
Coco performed AND served, which is frankly greedy. This Richard Quinn Spring 2026 gown paired a black corseted bodice with a giant cloud of white tulle, finished with a single red rose at the drop waist and a black bow because Quinn does not know how to do romance quietly.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s a debutante-gone-rogue silhouette and she wore the drama like she’d been doing it her whole life. The black-and-white-and-one-bloodred-rose color story is so cinematic it should come with a trigger warning.
14. Rhea Seehorn in Lanvin
The Pluribus of it all – Rhea is having her main-character year and dressed for it. This navy silk Lanvin with the subtle embellishment and a little train trailing off the back is the kind of grown, deliberate elegance that doesn’t beg for attention but gets it anyway.
Embed from Getty ImagesThat blue against her coloring? Criminal. She’s spent years being the best-dressed person nobody put on a list, and I refuse to keep that energy going. Quietly one of the most polished women in the room.
15. Claire Danes in Prada
Claire does not chase a carpet, the carpet waits for Claire. She turned up in a clean, graphic Prada with Jessica McCormack jewels and that slightly off-kilter restraint that always reads more interesting than whatever’s covered in crystals next to it.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s giving “I read the essay TIME wrote about me and I have notes.” Not the loudest look of the night, but the most her – and on this particular carpet, knowing exactly who you are is the whole flex. Hugh Dancy on her arm doing dutiful husband duty was a nice touch.