Every first Monday of May, the fashion world holds its collective breath. The red carpet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art becomes the most photographed stretch of pavement on the planet, and somewhere in the crowd of sculptural gowns and bewildering headpieces, a couple makes their grand public debut. The camera flashes, the internet goes wild, and the relationship clock starts ticking in a direction nobody sees coming.

While the outfits last forever in archives, the relationships have a very different timeline.

The Met Gala Curse is not an ancient hex, a velvet-robed prophecy, or anything remotely supernatural. It is, at its core, a pattern so consistent that even the most skeptical observer has to raise an eyebrow. When a celebrity couple makes a high-profile joint appearance at the Met Gala, whether as a debut or a peak-visibility moment, a breakup has a curious habit of following within months. The curse is equal parts Hollywood fragility, public scrutiny, and genuinely suspicious timing.

And if you need proof, the evidence starts in 2017.

Selena Gomez and The Weeknd arrived at the 2017 Met Gala with coordinated looks and the kind of energy that announces a relationship louder than any press release ever could. Their romance had begun quietly in late 2016, but the gala transformed them into a bona fide it-couple overnight. For a brief, beautiful moment, they were the most talked-about pair in the room.

By October 2017, it was over. Reports pointed to busy schedules and different life directions, which, in celebrity terms, is the most graceful way of saying two people grew in opposite directions. Gomez later spoke warmly about the relationship, even revisiting his music during quieter times, and The Weeknd continued building his empire. The timeline, however, was suspicious enough to plant the first seed of curse mythology.

If the curse had no mercy for Gomez and The Weeknd, it certainly had none waiting for a couple who showed up as fresh parents.

By the time Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott arrived at the 2018 Met Gala as fresh parents to baby Stormi, they were already one of the most scrutinized couples on the planet. Their coordinated heavenly-themed looks made headlines, and the appearance felt like a statement of permanence. They had survived early parenthood together, which is no small feat.

What followed was a long, complicated dance of separations and reunions. They parted ways in 2019, reconciled enough to welcome son Aire in 2022, and called it quits for good around 2023. Co-parenting became their primary project, executed with admirable civility. The Met moment captured a high point, and everything that came after confirmed the curse loves a dramatic arc.

A wedding ring offered no protection either, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth were about to find that out.

Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth showed up to the 2019 Met Gala as a married couple, which should have been the curse's kryptonite. They had years of history, a beautiful ceremony, and coordinating looks that suggested genuine partnership. The gala served as a celebration of everything they had survived together.

They separated in August 2019, just months later and less than a year after their wedding. Cyrus leaned into the personal growth narrative, and her music from that period reflected a woman very much finding herself again. Hemsworth kept things private. The curse, it turns out, does not care about vows.

Even indie darlings are not immune. Phoebe Bridgers and Paul Mescal were next to learn that lesson the hard way.

Phoebe Bridgers and Paul Mescal were practically assembled in a laboratory to be the indie darling couple of the moment. They connected online in 2020 over his Normal People role, and went Instagram-official in 2021. They arrived at the 2022 Met Gala looking like two people who had no idea what was coming.

By December 2022, the relationship had quietly dissolved, with song lyrics doing more confirming than any public statement ever did. Mescal went on to star in Gladiator II. Bridgers continued writing music that made people weep on public transport. Both thrived. The curse, apparently, only affects the relationship, not the careers.

While two indie darlings handled their split with quiet grace, the curse was about to go decidedly mainstream with its next targets.

The Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson situation moved at a speed that defied rational explanation. They went from a Saturday Night Live sketch to a full-blown romance in record time, and by the 2022 Met Gala, they were one of the most photographed couples of the evening. Kardashian wore Marilyn Monroe's iconic dress. Davidson wore the expression of a man who could not believe his luck.

August 2022 brought the split, with sources citing conflicting schedules. The relationship had burned bright and brief, which is essentially the definition of a perfectly cursed Met Gala romance. Kardashian returned to building her brands. Davidson moved forward with characteristic ease. The curse collected another entry.

As a high-voltage fling burned out faster than anyone expected, two rising stars were about to write the most recent chapter.

Barry Keoghan and Sabrina Carpenter arrived at the 2024 Met Gala riding a genuine wave of cultural momentum. Keoghan had just delivered a career-defining performance in Saltburn, and Carpenter was mid-ascent into full pop superstardom. Together, they were precisely the kind of couple the internet decides to root for wholeheartedly.

By December 2024, they had parted ways on reportedly amicable terms. Carpenter released her 'Short n' Sweet' era to massive acclaim. Keoghan continued booking projects. The breakup was handled gracefully, but the timing was, once again, impeccably on the curse schedule.

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Not every couple has fallen into the pattern. Shawn Mendes and Hailey Bieber, FKA Twigs and Robert Pattinson, and Cole Sprouse and Lili Reinhart all made the list eventually, while Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, along with Beyonce and Jay-Z, have attended repeatedly and remain completely unbothered. Real or coincidence, the Met Gala curse has claimed enough couples to make the first Monday of May feel less like a fashion event and more like a relationship roulette.

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What are your thoughts on the Met Gala Curse? Do you think it is real? Let us know in the comments.