Goths are so back. Elements of the dark and macabre were all over the green carpet at the Met Gala this year, from the intense smokey eyes on the likes of Zendaya and Emma Chamberlain to the choppy black fringes on Greta Lee and Ashley Graham that were pure Beetlejuice.

Zendaya always turns up in a strong beauty look for the Met Gala and this year was no different. Wearing a custom Margiela dress, inspired by the SS19 Dior Haute Couture show, and a feather headdress by Philip Treacy, her make-up was a gothic take on 1920s flapper make-up courtesy of Raoul Alejandre. Eyebrows were pencil thin, the smokey eye was in shades of pink and maroons with a heavy black eyeliner, and lips were dark red and glossy. Imagine Clara Bow and Josephine Baker. Meanwhile, her hair was a low bun done by Ursula Stephen who used Living Proof products including the 5-in-1 Styling Treatment to twist it into a shape inspired by a calla lily.

Chamberlain also had a dark and moody look. The brown smokey eye extended up to her eyebrows and out, with a matching brown lip courtesy of make-up artist Kelsey Deenihan Fisher who used Lancôme products. Hairstylist Sami Knight, meanwhile, created a slicked-back high bun with two loose pieces framing her face.

For hair, many people seemed to draw inspiration from the jagged fringe of Beetlejuice’s Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder). Hairstylist Justine Marjan gave Ashley Graham sharp, pointy bangs with an updo to wear with her Ludovic de Saint Sernin dress. Greta Lee also had a choppy fringe, verging on a micro-fringe, which she wore with her hair down courtesy of Jenny Cho. Make-up artist Nina Park meanwhile created an ethereal look with celestial hues of dawn and dusk using Addiction Tokyo products. This hair trend is fitting considering that the sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, is coming to our screens this September, with Jenna Ortega joining the cast. 

Dark make-up elements were also seen on Charli XCX, who wore a deep brown lip (courtesy of Isamaya Ffrench using MAC Cosmetics’s lip pencil in Chestnut and MACximal lipstick in Sin) with her very 90s, spikey up-do; Amelia Gray’s wet, black hair which came down like jellyfish tendrils onto her Undercover SS24 “Terrarium” Dress; and Doja Cat who channeled the crying girl look with mascara running down her face. The make-up came from the Pat McGrath team who used the Mothership V: Bronze Seduction palette and Lust Gloss in the shade Earth Angel.