American actress and model Blake Lively had not returned to the Met Gala since 2022. When she reappeared on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the night of May 4-5, 2026, it was with a dress that was well worth the 4-year wait - and 4 meters of train.
An archived Versace dress from 2006
Blake Lively co-chaired the Met Gala in 2022, wearing a Versace gown that transformed live on the red carpet—becoming one of the most memorable moments in the event's recent history. This year, she made her grand return after a four-year absence, wearing an Atelier Versace gown from Spring 2006, an archival piece personally selected and approved by Donatella Versace.
Blake told Vogue: "Blake has had so many iconic moments with Versace at the Met, and tonight is no exception." The pastel gown, inspired by 18th-century Venetian Rococo paintings, featured a draped bodice embroidered with gemstones in a gradient of soft tones, several sculptural protrusions at the hips evoking the shapes of Baroque church interiors, and a 4-meter train.
BLAKE LIVELY AT THE MET GALA pic.twitter.com/xdwptIv6OO
— 2000s (@PopCulture2000s) May 5, 2026
"Clothing is a canvas"
When interviewed by Vogue on the red carpet, Blake Lively explained her choice: "Because the theme is based on art, I wanted to wear an archival piece. A garment is truly a canvas, and it tells a story. Being able to choose a piece that has its own history and has stood the test of time was special." She also described the dress as resembling "a sunrise and a sunset" simultaneously.
The "most personal" bag of the evening
Beyond the dress, it was a discreet accessory that touched the most: a personalized Judith Leiber Couture minaudière, its four sides adorned with drawings by each of her four children. An intimate and moving counterpoint to the grandeur of the rest of the gown—a reminder that even on the world's grandest red carpet, what matters most is family.
Accessories that match the room's quality
Blake Lively completed her look with Christian Louboutin heels, Lorraine Schwartz jewelry, and her hair in Old Hollywood waves cascading over her shoulders. Her makeup, with its Californian bronzed highlights and subtle eyeliner, balanced the baroque grandeur of the dress without ever trying to compete with it.
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A continuing story with Versace at the Met
This 2026 dress is finally part of a Versace-Lively saga that spans more than a decade of Met Galas: the gold mermaid gown with blue feathers in 2017, the embroidered burgundy "Heavenly Bodies" dress in 2018, the Statue of Liberty gown in 2022—and now this pastel Rococo dress with a 4-meter train. Each year, a new chapter in the same story.
Four years of absence, a four-meter train, four children's drawings on a minaudière – Blake Lively thus made a comeback that combined spectacle and intimacy with rare precision. Exactly as we expected her to do.
