Met Gala 2022: Blake Lively, Mindy Kaling and Shawn Mendes glow in gilded glamour

Fashion's biggest night returned to its regularly scheduled programming this year — and the looks were as extravagant as ever.

After an irregular two years, which saw the 2020 event cancelled and the 2021 event pushed to September, the Met Gala returned to its usual slot on the first Monday of May.

The gala is an annual fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute, with an A-list guest list brimming with movie stars, fashionistas, athletes, entrepreneurs and socialites.

The night's co-chairs were Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, Regina King, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. For the second year in a row, honorary co-chairs are designer Tom Ford, head of Instagram Adam Mosseri, and – as has been the case for the past 27 years – Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

This year's dress code is "gilded glamour, white tie," and stars are taking cues from HBO's The Gilded Age, adorned in their best creams, ivories and golds. The Met Gala honours American designers this year with its theme, "In America: An Anthology of Fashion," the follow-up to last year's "In America: A Lexicon of Fashion."

Reynolds and Lively were one of the first pairings to hit the carpet.

Lively wore a copper-coloured Versace gown with geometric detailing on the bodice. The bow-like embellishment transformed into a baby blue train with metallic detailing as she ascended the stairs in The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Her beau, Vancouver-born Ryan Reynolds, wore an elegant velvet tuxedo — sticking to the evening's white tie theme — with a chain dangling from the cummerbund.

Billie Eilish wore a Gucci look with lace mint-green sleeves and an ivory skirt gathered at the waist. Her signature jet black hair sat high on her head, a black choker fastened around her neck.

The pop singer told Vogue that the outfit was made entirely from upcycled materials. "I just wanted to be as eco-friendly as possible," she said on the carpet.

Janelle Monáe dazzled in a glittery Ralph Lauren dress with a patterned bib and headpiece. They wore a cuff to match the sleek, backless gown.

"This is gilded glamour from the future," the Tightrope singer told reporters.

WeCrashed star Jared Leto and Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele went for an uncanny look. 

The pair wore a cream tuxedo jacket with black lapels and encrusted with jewels, accessorizing with leather gloves, sunglasses and silky red bowties.