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Met Gala Red Carpet

Bradley Cooper, Rihanna, Taylor Swift and more stars we missed this year at the Met Gala

Source: USA Today
May 7, 2019 at 09:52
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9b0a733d 40df 4296 aa80 f311fd60e730 Camp MetGala 050619

Celine Dion, Billy Porter, Lena Waithe and more celebrities take over the Met Gala red carpet and explore the theme, "Notes on Fashion." Josmar Taveras, USA TODAY

Plenty of stars went all out for the 2019 Met Gala. But a few who normally frequent the biggest night in fashion were noticeably absent from this year's festivities.

So who was missing and where were they Monday night?

1. Bradley Cooper 

Bradley Cooper was one of the 183 people approved by Vogue editor Anna Wintour for this year's gala committee, according to E! and The Hollywood Reporter. But the "A Star is Born" actor was noticeably absent from the red carpet. He's currently in Los Angeles working as a producer on post-production of "Joker," the Joaquin Phoenix-led "Batman" origin story, publicist Nicole Caruso told USA TODAY. 

Still in attendance? His longtime girlfriend, Irina Shayk, who dazzled in a dark blue velvet Burberry gown

Bradley Cooper missed the Met Gala, but girlfriend Irina Shayk was still in attendance. (Photo: Jon Kopaloff, Getty Images)

 

2. Blake Lively (and Ryan Reynolds)

More members of the committee that were MIA: Blake Lively and hubby Ryan Reynolds. The couple usually turns heads and gives us and major couple goals, but neither made an appearance. 

Could the couple still be traveling in promotion of Reynolds's "Pokemon Detective Pikachu?" USA TODAY reached out to the couple's representatives for comment. 

Blake Lively went all out last year for the theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination." (Photo: Charles Sykes, Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

 

3. Beyoncé

Queen Bey hasn't been on the Met Gala red carpet since 2016 and it appears we'll have to wait at least another year. Beyonce and Jay-Z have been silent on social media. Entertainment Tonight reports the couple is on vacation.  

Beyonce turned heads in 2015, following the theme "China: Through the Looking Glass." (Photo: Charles Sykes, Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

 

4. Rihanna

Last year, Rihanna served as one of three guest co-hosts alongside Amal Clooney and Donatella Versace. She was missing this year but posted a shot of Anna Wintour with the caption "best dressed" and added the caption "met ball 2019 ???‍♀️" to a fan's tweet speculating she was "at home playing with that (expletive) makeup." 

Rihanna, who was anointed the unofficial Queen of the Met Gala in 2018, was noticeably absent this year. (Photo: HECTOR RETAMAL, AFP/Getty Images)

 

5. Brie Larson

Captain Marvel herself may have been featured in that iconic 2017 Kardashian bathroom selfie, but Larson sat this year out. She didn't explain why, but posted a selfie on Instagram Monday night that she was "in sweats while I watch everyone else at #metball." 

6. Kate Hudson

Though she skipped this year's red carpet, she did share a photo of herself getting ready before the 2017 gala. "#MissingTheNightNotTheHangover ;)" she wrote. 

7. Taylor Swift

There's only one of Taylor Swift, and she wasn't at the Met Gala this year. With the release of her single, "ME!" and a new album on the horizon, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for another appearance. The singer, who was photographed walking in London on Sunday, may still be out of the country.

Swifties have also theorized that the 2016 Gala is when Swift met boyfriend Joe Alwyn. The song "Dress" from her "Reputation" album includes the lyrics: "Flashback to when you met me / Your buzz cut and my hair bleached." Indeed, Swift had bleached-blonde hair on the red carpet that year, while Alwyn rocked a short 'do. 
 

Taylor Swift fans believe this Met Gala look is what she's referencing when she sings about meeting a man with a "buzz cut and my hair bleached" in the song "Dress." (Photo: JUSTIN LANE, EPA)

 

8. Sarah Jessica Parker

Another Met Gala mainstay, Parker revealed on Instagram that she was in New York City on Monday, but would be "traveling out of country this eve." 

9. Ariana Grande

After Grande made a marvelous Met Gala debut in 2018 with her Sistine Chapel gown, we would have loved to see her take on camp. Alas, the "Thank U, Next" singer had a previously scheduled tour date in Los Angeles on Monday. 

Ariana Grande had a concert scheduled in Los Angeles for Monday night. (Photo: ANGELA WEISS, AFP/Getty Images)

 

10. Chadwick Boseman

The "Black Panther" star got another invite this year, but announced on Twitter that he would be unable to attend "due to my shooting schedule." He may have been referring to Spike Lee's Netflix Vietnam veteran drama, in which Deadline and Variety reported he was cast earlier this year.

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