For years, the red carpet has been a stage of its own, where celebrities and artists flaunt their eccentricity and indulge in some self-expression.
Over the years, stars have created some pop culture history-making moments with just their wardrobe choices.
Some dresses “smelled” and some dresses squeaked. Some made bold statements, and others were called fashion disasters.
Here’s a roundup of some of the wildest celebrity fashion outfits that have left audiences blown away.
#1 Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga “smelled” like meat and she absolutely didn’t mind it during her controversial 2010 MTV VMAs appearance.
“It was thrilling to wear,” she told Vogue in 2021.
The Born This Way singer explained that she was wearing a corset, and meat was sewn onto it.
“They didn't just drape meat over me and cross their fingers,” she told the outlet.
The outfit could have different interpretations and wasn’t meant to offend vegans or vegetarians, she said in the past.
Interestingly, during an interview with Vanity Fair earlier this month, she took a lie detector test and was asked whether she would wear raw beef as couture again.
“I don’t think so. No,” she said.
The person conducting the test said the results were “inconclusive,” to which the singer said: “Oh. Well, that was a surprise.”
“It was thrilling to wear,” she told Vogue in 2021.
The Born This Way singer explained that she was wearing a corset, and meat was sewn onto it.
“They didn't just drape meat over me and cross their fingers,” she told the outlet.
The outfit could have different interpretations and wasn’t meant to offend vegans or vegetarians, she said in the past.
Interestingly, during an interview with Vanity Fair earlier this month, she took a lie detector test and was asked whether she would wear raw beef as couture again.
“I don’t think so. No,” she said.
The person conducting the test said the results were “inconclusive,” to which the singer said: “Oh. Well, that was a surprise.”
26points
#2 Rose Mcgowan
Long before Bianca Censori made ‘wearing almost nothing’ her entire fashion aesthetic, Rose McGowan was the first woman to take the “naked” dressing trend from the runway to the red carpet.
Holding the arm of her then-boyfriend Marilyn Manson, McGowan appeared at the VMAs in 1998 in a beaded dress that she hand-picked herself.
“They sl*t-shamed me like crazy. It was kind of hard. I hadn’t really ever dealt with global media shaming,” she told Yahoo! Entertainment in 2023.
The Charmed star said “most of the women” want to make a “calculated, sexy move to turn people on” when they dress that way on the red carpet. But she said it was different for her.
“If you look at me, I did it with power. I didn't do it with my hand on my hip to be sexy,” she told the outlet.
“...Mine was like, ‘I’m gonna f*** with your brain. I'm going to blow your brain up.’ And nobody had done it,” she added.
Maja Hanson, the designer behind the Hollywood fashion history-making look, said looks like these were “happening on the runway at the time, but I think she was the person who took it from the runway to the red carpet.”
“I don’t remember anyone doing it before her,” Hanson told Page Six in 2020. Other people have worn similar things since then, but she was the first to really have that ‘wow’ moment.”
Holding the arm of her then-boyfriend Marilyn Manson, McGowan appeared at the VMAs in 1998 in a beaded dress that she hand-picked herself.
“They sl*t-shamed me like crazy. It was kind of hard. I hadn’t really ever dealt with global media shaming,” she told Yahoo! Entertainment in 2023.
The Charmed star said “most of the women” want to make a “calculated, sexy move to turn people on” when they dress that way on the red carpet. But she said it was different for her.
“If you look at me, I did it with power. I didn't do it with my hand on my hip to be sexy,” she told the outlet.
“...Mine was like, ‘I’m gonna f*** with your brain. I'm going to blow your brain up.’ And nobody had done it,” she added.
Maja Hanson, the designer behind the Hollywood fashion history-making look, said looks like these were “happening on the runway at the time, but I think she was the person who took it from the runway to the red carpet.”
“I don’t remember anyone doing it before her,” Hanson told Page Six in 2020. Other people have worn similar things since then, but she was the first to really have that ‘wow’ moment.”
23points
#3 Bianca Censori
Bianca Censori had the internet begging her to cover up after she put her entire body on display on the 2025 Grammys red carpet.
In a moment that deserves its own chapter in the book of wild red carpet moments, the Australian-born model initially showed up at the awards show in an enormous black coat with her husband Kanye West.
After the rap mogul seemingly asked his wife to “make a scene,” Censori dropped the coat and posed in a see-through outfit.
Fashion and optics aside, the viral moment had experts decoding how the Heartless rapper might be controlling his wife.
In a moment that deserves its own chapter in the book of wild red carpet moments, the Australian-born model initially showed up at the awards show in an enormous black coat with her husband Kanye West.
After the rap mogul seemingly asked his wife to “make a scene,” Censori dropped the coat and posed in a see-through outfit.
Fashion and optics aside, the viral moment had experts decoding how the Heartless rapper might be controlling his wife.
21points
#4 Zendaya
Zendaya hit the red carpet for the world premiere of Dune: Part Two wearing a chrome bodysuit.
The piece was from Thierry Mugler’s fall/winter 1995-96 couture collection, and it featured metal plates and see-through plexiglass panels on the stomach, bust, thighs, and butt.
The archival Mugler look had first graced the runway at Paris Fashion Week in 1995.
The clear cutout panels on her derrière had the internet’s imaginative minds wondering the same thing.
“Imagine her farting in that and the cheeks getting all steamed up,” one said.
“You read my mind,” another person chimed in. “All I can think about now, cheers.”
“Imagine her farting in that and the cheeks getting all steamed up,” quipped another.
The piece was from Thierry Mugler’s fall/winter 1995-96 couture collection, and it featured metal plates and see-through plexiglass panels on the stomach, bust, thighs, and butt.
The archival Mugler look had first graced the runway at Paris Fashion Week in 1995.
The clear cutout panels on her derrière had the internet’s imaginative minds wondering the same thing.
“Imagine her farting in that and the cheeks getting all steamed up,” one said.
“You read my mind,” another person chimed in. “All I can think about now, cheers.”
“Imagine her farting in that and the cheeks getting all steamed up,” quipped another.
Report
20points
#5 Cher
When Cher sat down with her longtime collaborator and designer Bob Mackie to discuss ideas for her 1986 Oscars outfit, she resolutely told him she didn’t want to look like a housewife in an evening gown.
Mackie said in the documentary Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion that Cher was “pissed” with the Academy for not nominating for her role in Mask, for which she won Best Actress at Cannes.
So, for her revenge dress, she wore a massive feathered headpiece with an ab-baring, jewel-encrusted outfit.
It was “my ‘f*** you’ moment to the Academy because, you know, all you have to judge me on is my work, not my life,” the icon said in the documentary.
Mackie said in the documentary Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion that Cher was “pissed” with the Academy for not nominating for her role in Mask, for which she won Best Actress at Cannes.
So, for her revenge dress, she wore a massive feathered headpiece with an ab-baring, jewel-encrusted outfit.
It was “my ‘f*** you’ moment to the Academy because, you know, all you have to judge me on is my work, not my life,” the icon said in the documentary.
19points
#6 Rihanna
In another internet-breaking moment, Rihanna appeared at the annual Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards (the CFDAs) in 2014 wearing a Swarovski crystal-embellished see-through dress, designed by Adam Selman.
The hitmaker went braless, with a flesh-toned underwear underneath the sheer dress, while the fur shawl added a touch of Hollywood glam.
While speaking to Vogue in 2016 about the outfit, she said she wished she wore a bedazzled thong under the dress.
“Could you imagine the CFDA dress with a bra? I would slice my throat,” she told the outlet. “I already wanted to, for wearing a thong that wasn’t bedazzled. That’s the only regret I have in my life.”
The hitmaker went braless, with a flesh-toned underwear underneath the sheer dress, while the fur shawl added a touch of Hollywood glam.
While speaking to Vogue in 2016 about the outfit, she said she wished she wore a bedazzled thong under the dress.
“Could you imagine the CFDA dress with a bra? I would slice my throat,” she told the outlet. “I already wanted to, for wearing a thong that wasn’t bedazzled. That’s the only regret I have in my life.”
Report
16points
#7 Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera fashioned a top out of a mere scarf for her MTV Video Music Awards appearance in 2002.
“That was literally a scarf that we were just playing with in the mirror,” she said in a Vogue interview.
The Genie in a Bottle singer said she and Trish Summerville, her stylist in the early 2000s, “scooped” the scarf around her back and then pulled the sides up.
“I was like, ‘Okay, great. We’re done … That’s the look,’” she recalled.
It was “truly me living my best life,” the Grammy winner said about the red carpet look—a signature look from the Christina Aguilera style archives.
“That was literally a scarf that we were just playing with in the mirror,” she said in a Vogue interview.
The Genie in a Bottle singer said she and Trish Summerville, her stylist in the early 2000s, “scooped” the scarf around her back and then pulled the sides up.
“I was like, ‘Okay, great. We’re done … That’s the look,’” she recalled.
It was “truly me living my best life,” the Grammy winner said about the red carpet look—a signature look from the Christina Aguilera style archives.
Report
14points
#8 Kim Kardashian
Kim Kardashian had everyone talking about her outfit during the 2021 Met Gala, and she didn’t even have to show her face for it.
The reality TV mogul was covered in black from head to toe, wearing a Balenciaga outfit
A source claimed that it was her then-husband Kanye West who encouraged her to wear the unconventional ensemble.
“Kanye gave her the courage to push creativity and people's imagination through art,” the source told People. “It's the ultimate confidence.”
The insider called the look a “new subculture and fashion statement,” because everyone knew it was her even without a logo or face.
The reality TV mogul was covered in black from head to toe, wearing a Balenciaga outfit
A source claimed that it was her then-husband Kanye West who encouraged her to wear the unconventional ensemble.
“Kanye gave her the courage to push creativity and people's imagination through art,” the source told People. “It's the ultimate confidence.”
The insider called the look a “new subculture and fashion statement,” because everyone knew it was her even without a logo or face.
12points
#9 Doja Cat
“Meow,” Doja Cat told an interviewer at the 2023 Met Gala.
To mark her first ever Met Gala look, the rapper kept with the event’s theme—“Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”—and celebrated the late designer by dressing up as his legendary beloved white Burmese cat, Choupette.
Wearing an Oscar de la Renta ensemble, the artist completed the feline transformation with a cat ear hood as well as cat prosthetics on her face.
Doja Cat was fully committed to her character and meowed through an entire interview with Vogue on the red carpet.
“Meow. Meow. Meow,” Doja Cat told a Vogue interviewer on the red carpet when asked about the inspiration for the night’s outfit.
To mark her first ever Met Gala look, the rapper kept with the event’s theme—“Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”—and celebrated the late designer by dressing up as his legendary beloved white Burmese cat, Choupette.
Wearing an Oscar de la Renta ensemble, the artist completed the feline transformation with a cat ear hood as well as cat prosthetics on her face.
Doja Cat was fully committed to her character and meowed through an entire interview with Vogue on the red carpet.
“Meow. Meow. Meow,” Doja Cat told a Vogue interviewer on the red carpet when asked about the inspiration for the night’s outfit.
11points
#10 Lizzy Gardiner
“How did she sit down in that thing?” Time Magazine asked after Australian costume designer Lizzy Gardiner left jaws on the floor with a dress made from 254 American Express Gold cards to the Oscars.
Back in 1995, when Gardiner wasn’t too well-known in Hollywood, the costume designer was nominated for Best Costume Design for her work on The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
She later revealed that she wanted to incorporate a symbol of American culture into her outfit. So she and LA designer Salvador Perez spent about 12 hours putting together a dress with American Express Gold cards.
American Express had sent her more than 300 cards, each with Gardiner’s name but invalid because they lacked one digit, according to CNN.
Back in 1995, when Gardiner wasn’t too well-known in Hollywood, the costume designer was nominated for Best Costume Design for her work on The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
She later revealed that she wanted to incorporate a symbol of American culture into her outfit. So she and LA designer Salvador Perez spent about 12 hours putting together a dress with American Express Gold cards.
American Express had sent her more than 300 cards, each with Gardiner’s name but invalid because they lacked one digit, according to CNN.
Report
11points
#11 Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez not only broke the internet with her green Versace dress, she led to the creation of the now famous Google Images function.
The Jenny from the Block singer revealed that her then-stylist Andrea Lieberman begged her not to wear the dress because others had worn it before her.
“My stylist was like, ‘Please don't wear it. Somebody else has worn it,’” she recalled in an interview with Vogue.
“‘Well, you bought it, and it looks the best, so I'm going to wear it,’” she recalled telling her stylist. “And so I did. And it caused quite a stir.”
A “stir” was caused, indeed.
The look not only sealed her repertoire as a fashionista but also became the most popular search query Google had seen at the time. The sheer number of internet searches led to the birth of Google Images.
The Jenny from the Block singer revealed that her then-stylist Andrea Lieberman begged her not to wear the dress because others had worn it before her.
“My stylist was like, ‘Please don't wear it. Somebody else has worn it,’” she recalled in an interview with Vogue.
“‘Well, you bought it, and it looks the best, so I'm going to wear it,’” she recalled telling her stylist. “And so I did. And it caused quite a stir.”
A “stir” was caused, indeed.
The look not only sealed her repertoire as a fashionista but also became the most popular search query Google had seen at the time. The sheer number of internet searches led to the birth of Google Images.
Report
10points
#12 Sam Smith
“I’ll never forget this moment,” Sam Smith said as they fondly recalled their outfit to the 2023 BRIT Awards.
The custom latex look, designed by HARRI, was called a number of things, including “a Hemorrhoid on legs.”
“Sam Smith coming dressed as the Queen of Clubs,” one commenter said, while another wrote, “You look like a chicken.”
The Stay with Me singer called the latex getup the “favorite thing” they have “ever worn in [their] life.”
“I had to walk in this outside of the O2 Arena [in London],” Smith told Vogue last August. “I’m just, like, squeaking walking outside in this latex outfit.”
Even though he couldn’t put his arms down or put his legs together, he called it “fabulous.”
“I felt so powerful because of the humor behind it,” they said.
The custom latex look, designed by HARRI, was called a number of things, including “a Hemorrhoid on legs.”
“Sam Smith coming dressed as the Queen of Clubs,” one commenter said, while another wrote, “You look like a chicken.”
The Stay with Me singer called the latex getup the “favorite thing” they have “ever worn in [their] life.”
“I had to walk in this outside of the O2 Arena [in London],” Smith told Vogue last August. “I’m just, like, squeaking walking outside in this latex outfit.”
Even though he couldn’t put his arms down or put his legs together, he called it “fabulous.”
“I felt so powerful because of the humor behind it,” they said.
Report
10points
#13 Jared Leto
For the camp-themed Met Gala in 2019, Jared Leto walked on the red carpet sweetly carrying around his plus one—a lifelike decapitated head… of himself.
The actor looked dapper in a silky red gown with long sleeves and a high neck, complete with shoulder pads and a jewel-encrusted bodychain.
The Suicide Squad actor later said he lost the Gucci human head.
“I think someone may have stolen it,” he told GQ a few months after the glamorous event.
“If anyone out there finds it, bring it into your nearest Gucci store in exchange for a pair of dirty sneakers,” he added.
The actor looked dapper in a silky red gown with long sleeves and a high neck, complete with shoulder pads and a jewel-encrusted bodychain.
The Suicide Squad actor later said he lost the Gucci human head.
“I think someone may have stolen it,” he told GQ a few months after the glamorous event.
“If anyone out there finds it, bring it into your nearest Gucci store in exchange for a pair of dirty sneakers,” he added.
Report
7points
#14 Timothée Chalamet
Timothée Chalamet showed a little bit of his outlandish style when he appeared at the Venice Film Festival in 2022.
Wearing a custom outfit by Haider Ackermann, the Dune star went backless in the red halter-neck top and matching tailored pants.
The actor wore the blood-red piece for the premiere of his movie Bones and All, which tells the story about a cannibal couple living in the 80s.
Wearing a custom outfit by Haider Ackermann, the Dune star went backless in the red halter-neck top and matching tailored pants.
The actor wore the blood-red piece for the premiere of his movie Bones and All, which tells the story about a cannibal couple living in the 80s.
7points
#15 Madonna
Back when Madonna was dominating the pop world in her 30s, the singer released the video for Like a Prayer, which stirred immense controversy as she danced in front of burning crosses and kissed a Black saint.
On the back of the controversy, she cemented her place as a rebel by wearing a pink satin cone bra onstage to sing Express Yourself during her Blond Ambition Tour in 1990.
Designer Jean Paul Gaultier was the man behind the black suit and pink cone she wore during the performance.
“She knew what she wanted—a pinstripe suit, the feminine corsetry,” the designer recalled. “Madonna likes my clothes because they combine the masculine and the feminine.”
On the back of the controversy, she cemented her place as a rebel by wearing a pink satin cone bra onstage to sing Express Yourself during her Blond Ambition Tour in 1990.
Designer Jean Paul Gaultier was the man behind the black suit and pink cone she wore during the performance.
“She knew what she wanted—a pinstripe suit, the feminine corsetry,” the designer recalled. “Madonna likes my clothes because they combine the masculine and the feminine.”
Report
5points
#16 Julia Fox (New York Fashion Week)
Julia Fox made a strong case for cutout fashion with a New York Fashion Week look in 2024.
The actress wore a spider web-like black cutout dress with a white fur coat to the Laquan Smith show.
The look was completed with bleached brows and hair colored in hues of lavender and gray.
The actress wore a spider web-like black cutout dress with a white fur coat to the Laquan Smith show.
The look was completed with bleached brows and hair colored in hues of lavender and gray.
Report
4points
#17 Kylie Jenner
Kylie Jenner wore a vintage Mugler gown from 1998 as she attended the 2024 Annual Academy Museum Gala with her sister Kendall.
“Best glam of the night,” a fan commented on the figure-hugging dress, which featured sheer fabric and sparkling sequins.
Others joked about the black fabric being stuck at her hips.
“I feel like this looks like you didn’t pull your dress up all the way,” one said, while another quipped, “looks like your wearing a little dress around your hips.”
“I’m still trying to work out this dress,” wrote another. “It to me looks like the arm holes are on your hips.”
“Best glam of the night,” a fan commented on the figure-hugging dress, which featured sheer fabric and sparkling sequins.
Others joked about the black fabric being stuck at her hips.
“I feel like this looks like you didn’t pull your dress up all the way,” one said, while another quipped, “looks like your wearing a little dress around your hips.”
“I’m still trying to work out this dress,” wrote another. “It to me looks like the arm holes are on your hips.”
2points
#18 Miley Cyrus
As the host for the 2015 MTV VMAs, Miley Cyrus had several outfit changes throughout the night.
Perhaps one of the most interesting outfit choices of the night was a revealing PVC mini dress, adorned with what seemed to be pieces of oversized candy covering what needs to be covered.
The look was completed with white-out glasses and white boots.
Perhaps one of the most interesting outfit choices of the night was a revealing PVC mini dress, adorned with what seemed to be pieces of oversized candy covering what needs to be covered.
The look was completed with white-out glasses and white boots.
Report
1point
#19 Nicki Minaj
A staple risk-taker when it comes to fashion, Nicki Minaj wore a sculptural, Harajuku-inspired look by Amato Couture for the 2011 VMAs.
The futuristic bodice had metallic geometric panels, an oversized ice cream cone necklace, and what appeared to be stuffed toys.
When asked about the inspiration behind her outfit, the Anaconda rapper said: “Tokyo inspires this outfit. Harajuku is something I have been absorbing for a very long time.”
The futuristic bodice had metallic geometric panels, an oversized ice cream cone necklace, and what appeared to be stuffed toys.
When asked about the inspiration behind her outfit, the Anaconda rapper said: “Tokyo inspires this outfit. Harajuku is something I have been absorbing for a very long time.”
Report
0points
#20 Julia Fox
The internet wondered whether Julia Fox was copying Bianca Censori or trolling her when she showed up at a MAC event that kicked off New York Fashion Week.
The Uncut Gems actress, who previously dated Censori’s current husband and rapper Kanye West, wore a trench coat to the event.
When she posed for cameras, she pulled the coat apart to reveal an orange breastplate by Marina Hoermanseder.
The Uncut Gems actress, who previously dated Censori’s current husband and rapper Kanye West, wore a trench coat to the event.
When she posed for cameras, she pulled the coat apart to reveal an orange breastplate by Marina Hoermanseder.
Report
-2points