Kim Kardashian Suffers Wardrobe Malfunction at Last Night’s Met Gala—and Daughter North West Saved the Day

(Image credit: Getty)

published 2 May 2023

The dress was beautiful, but, when you put 50,000 freshwater pearls and 16,000 crystal pearls on a gown, there is at least a bit of a chance for calamity—and that’s what happened when Kim Kardashian’s stunning Schiaparelli gown experienced a wardrobe malfunction as Kardashian headed to the Met Gala red carpet last night. Thankfully, none other than Kardashian’s daughter North West was there to save the day, according to Entertainment Tonight.

Kardashian told Vogue on the red carpet “I wanted pearls. I thought, what is more Karl? The iconic Chanel pearls is what I always thought of, so we wanted to just be dripping in pearls,” she said. “Some popped on the way, and I told my daughter to grab them all. They’re real pearls, and she was putting them in her purse.”

North joined her mom at the event but didn’t walk the red carpet with her because of its 18-and-older age restriction.

Entertainment Tonight reports that Kardashian’s gown “continued to prove problematic throughout the evening. She was photographed returning to her New York City hotel with strands of the pearls ripping off and scattering on the ground as empty strands hung loose.” Ahhh, the things we do for fashion.

And the wardrobe malfunction may not have even been the most interesting part of the night for Kardashian—as People reports, she had a (seemingly very friendly) run-in with ex Pete Davidson, nine months after their split. If you’ll remember, at last year’s Met, Kardashian and Davidson walked the carpet together, Kardashian clad in Marilyn Monroe’s one-of-a-kind champagne rhinestone gown. A photographer snapped a photo of Kardashian and Davidson chatting with Usher, who made headlines of his own with Kardashian recently—he serenaded her last month during his Las Vegas residency. Photos show Davidson smiling at Kardashian as she looks at Usher; People reports “she even appeared to reach for Davidson’s hand at one point while addressing the comedian.”

This year’s Met Gala—held annually the first Monday in May—paid homage to legendary designer Karl Lagerfeld through its theme, “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty.” Kardashian’s custom haute couture Schiaparelli gown was designed by Daniel Roseberry and took 12 artisans 1,000 hours to craft.

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.