Cockroach Walking Red Carpet At Met Gala Goes Viral, Gets Crushed

 The Met Gala is known for over-the-top fashion looks and A-list celebrities, but this year it was literal vermin who stole the show.

Photographers took a break from snapping pics of Jared Leto wearing a gigantic cat costume to capture stills of an unexpected interloper. “Roach Roacherson,” as People magazine dubbed the little critter, got all the attention while creeping across the red carpet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

The cockroach quickly went viral on social media. “Imagine a cockroach outdressing everyone at the met gala,” one person wrote. 

Celebrity photographer Kevin Mazur proudly posed with his photo of the roach while grinning ear to ear. “That photographer is acting like he’s about to take the picture that will make his career,” one reaction said.

Ultimately, the roach met his demise on the carpet after getting squished.

“It is with deep sadness that we must report the #MetGala cockroach was stepped on. #RIP,” Variety tweeted alongside an image of the squashed bug.

This year’s Met Gala was a tribute to the late designer Karl Lagerfeld, who died in 2019. The party featured eye-catching fashion to celebrate the theme. “Celebrities, designers, and change-makers are challenged to create costumes that serve as both a fashion statement and a tribute to the concept,” Vogue wrote of the event’s fashion designs.

 

Though Lagerfeld was a titan of the fashion world following his decades-long work with the luxury brand Chanel, he was a controversial figure due to his “fatphobia.” He was also critical of the #MeToo movement. This led to some critics questioning this year’s Met Gala theme.

“He offended people right and left, making as much of an art out of the cutting aside as the perfectly cut double-face gown,” New York Times fashion critic Vanessa Friedman wrote following the German designer’s death.

“He judged, and knew he would be judged himself, but he didn’t care. Rather, he embraced it,” she said.

Leftist activist Jameela Jamil was openly critical of Lagerfeld being this year’s theme.

“Why is THIS who we celebrate when there are so many AMAZING designers out there who aren’t bigoted white men? What happened to everyone’s principles and ‘advocacy.’ You don’t get to stand for justice in these areas, and then attend the celebration of someone who reveled in his own public disdain for marginalized people,” Jamil said, per AP.