ANNE HATHAWAY’S ‘CROYDON FACELIFT’ AND OTHER RADICAL BEAUTY LOOKS AT THE MET GALA
It was a night of beauty transformations on Monday night at the Met Gala in New York, the annual fundraiser helmed by Vogue’s Anna Wintour.
The star-studded guest list is a famously curated line up that mostly consists of Hollywood A-listers, fashion elite and pop stars; it’s completely within the realms of normality to have Diana Ross and Lewis Hamilton walk the same stretch of carpet along with Kim Kardashian and Madonna.
The theme for the night was Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, which celebrated the Black dandy’s significant contribution to fashion. While in the style stakes this was interpreted cleverly with the tailored fabrics, cuts and shapes of the clothing, many stars extended their references to their beauty choices, too.
The Met Gala’s red (or indeed, blue) carpet is different to the Oscars or Golden Globes. It’s become the event that many Hollywood A-listers see as their moment to push the boundaries of glamour, much of which was seen on Monday night. Here are the radical beauty transformations we spotted...
Nicole Kidman’s slick crop
Nicole Kidman has seldom deviated from her waist-length Hollywood waves or classic chignons, but on Monday night she debuted her most dramatic hairstyle to go with her vintage-inspired black Balenciaga gown.
Cut into a style that resembled part-pixie crop, part bob with a sweeping side-fringe, the star’s longtime hairdresser Adir Abergel – who is one of Hollywood’s most sought-after hairstylists – said on his social media that “the inspiration was a tailored short cut that brought out the essence of Dandyism on Nicole Kidman. I wanted to celebrate this year’s theme by honoring the Dandies and their individuality, elegance, and confidence – where every detail is tailored to that unique person.”
Her hair colour had a noticeable tweak, too: the two-tone colour, with visible darker roots “smudged” into a warmer blonde shade was a departure from Kidman’s usual cooler “Scandi-blonde” tone.
Kidman looked remarkably fresh-faced, too. She has denied any tweakments in the past, instead relying on a good retinol serum and – like any great Aussie – a decades-long commitment to daily sunscreen.
Zendaya’s bronzed eyes
Arguably one of the best looks of the night, Zendaya paid homage to the zoot suit with a three-piece Louis Vuitton design by Pharrell Williams. While her outfit was a crisp ivory shade, her tonal make-up look was a masterclass in bronze. Her Emmy award-winning make-up artist Ernesto Casillas said he “opted for a super smouldering bronzed eye that would stand out under the brim of her hat. I kept the skin sculpted and glowing, with an equally sculpted and glossy lip.”
He executed her transformation to perfection. Indeed Zendaya’s sculpted, dark lip liner is the tailoring equivalent of make-up: Casillas used the Lip Cheat Contour Duo by Charlotte Tilbury (£22, Charlotte Tilbury), paired with a plumping, high-shine lip gloss.
Pamela Anderson’s new bob
Kidman wasn’t the only A-lister appearing with a dramatic new look on Monday night. While Pamela Anderson has been making the headlines in recent years by ditching make-up for a more natural aesthetic, she’s proof that you don’t need a full face of foundation and a bold lipstick to make an impact.
At the Met Gala, dressed in an ice-blue Tory Burch gown, the Baywatch star showed off a freshly-cut bob and boyish micro-fringe to go along with her 1930s-inspired pencil thin arched eyebrows. On paper it may not sound like something you’d expect on a 57-year-old actress, but in reality it’s a refreshingly modern, flattering choice that suits Anderson to perfection.
Demi Moore’s ‘tailored’ cheekbones
“Tailoring for the face alongside tailoring for the body as the beauty looks reflected the Met’s 2025 theme,” said British make-up artist Charlotte Tilbury MBE, whose team created many of the make-up looks at this year’s Gala.
For 62-year-old actress Demi Moore, the make-up artist – and Charlotte’s niece – Sofia Tilbury used the brand’s new “face contour system” for a “perfectly snatched, lifted look”. This included foundation, concealer and the £30 Hollywood Contour Wand by Charlotte Tilbury along the cheekbones to make them appear sharper and more lifted – exactly the make-up to suit her Thom Browne gown nicely.
Anne Hathaway’s ‘Croydon facelift’
She may be “North London Forever” as the Arsenal-anthem singing football mega-fan, but 42-year-old actress Anne Hathaway was sporting a “Croydon facelift” on Monday night. For the unfamiliar, this term is English slang for a hairstyle that is pulled back tightly and tied into a high ponytail, giving the appearance of a much more lifted forehead and face.
Whether her smooth visage is down to her hairstyle or a few subtle tweakments, Hathaway was looking undeniably fresh-faced in her Wes Gordon and Carolina Herrera look. The tail on her eyebrows appear to be following a more straight angle, too, which is a make-up artist’s secret to giving the illusion of a more lifted eye.
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