When you think of the annual Met Gala<\/a>, an extremely high-fashion red carpet comes to mind. As was the case at this year\u2019s affair, stars show up in one-of-a-kind couture creations<\/a> (not to mention jewels worth millions<\/a>)\u2014displaying the finest designs that luxury fashion houses have to offer. This is not, it should be said, about wearability or practicality: Rather, it centers around displaying just how creative, artistic, and downright over-the-top fashion can be.<\/p>\n It was surprising to many at-home viewers, then, that a number of attendees showed up to the 2026 Met Gala<\/a> in. . . jeans. A staple in our everyday wardrobes, sure, but hardly a formal or groundbreaking garment worthy of fashion\u2019s biggest night.<\/p>\n Troye Sivan, for one, wore head-to-toe Prada: His black coat and white poplin shirt were paired with devor\u00e9-effect jeans (and cool cowboy boots), a reference to the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe’s own look (and, it should be said, feathered coiffure). Model Bhavitha Mandava, meanwhile, wore Mathieu Blazy\u2019s Chanel\u2014her beige muslin half-zip sweater worn over a pair of muslin-printed pants that had a blue jean effect<\/em> (but, contrary to many reports, were not in fact denim-denim.)<\/p>\n Troye Sivan in head-to-toe Prada\u2014jeans included.<\/p>\n <\/span>Photo: Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Still: Fashion spectators had a lot to say online about the presence of the humble jean at the Met. One commenter wrote<\/a>, \u201cMet Gala in jeans? Really?\u201d Another wrote<\/a>, \u201cI don\u2019t care what the inspo is: Jeans at the Met Gala should be an automatic blacklist.\u201d But what if we told you. . . jeans can be quite effective at the Met, and even downright cool. Hear us out.<\/p>\n Mandava\u2019s look, for starters, was almost identical to the one she wore to open Chanel\u2019s pre-fall 2026<\/a> show in New York City\u2014a fitting homage to her own achievements, given she became the first Indian model to ever open a Chanel show that day. Her Met look, then, was personal and intentional, nodding to her own historic career moment. The jean \u201ceffect\u201d of her trousers was also right on-theme, too: The Met dress code this year was \u201cfashion is art<\/a>,\u201d and if a trompe l’oeil design makes you look twice, we\u2019d say that the pants accomplished the mission.<\/p>\n![\"Image](\"https:\/\/assets.vogue.com\/photos\/69fb5845bf358a88512add33\/master\/w_1600%2Cc_limit\/GettyImages-2274564945.jpg\"\/)
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