Galliano withdraws from 2027 Met Gala over antisemitism remarks

Fashion designer John Galliano has withdrawn from a major retrospective exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that was set to be the theme of the 2027 Met Gala, citing the pain his past antisemitic and racist remarks would cause. The decision, announced on August 31, 2026, throws the plans for the museum's prestigious spring event into uncertainty. In a statement posted to Instagram, Galliano said, "After much reflection and discussion with The Met and all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time." He explained that he did not want the debate surrounding him to place the museum in a difficult position or distract from the Costume Institute's work. The exhibition, titled "John Galliano: Horizons," was announced the previous month and would have made Galliano only the third living designer honored with such a retrospective, following Yves Saint Laurent and Rei Kawakubo. The controversy stems from incidents in 2010 and 2011 when Galliano, then the creative director of Christian Dior, was captured on video making drunken, antisemitic and anti-Asian remarks in a Paris bar.