Met Gala 2022: Kim Kardashian blasted over extreme ‘Marilyn Monroe dress’ weight loss
She was the best dressed celebrity at this year’s Met Gala – wearing Marilyn Monroe’s dress. But Kim Kardashian’s look sent a worrying message.
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She was the best dressed celebrity at this year’s Met Gala – wearing Marilyn Monroe’s $5 million dress. But Kim Kardashian’s extreme outfit, and her comments regarding her weight loss, has sent a concerning message, experts say.
A newly-blonde Kardashian wore the gown Monroe sported when she sang “Happy Birthday” to then-US President President John F. Kennedy in 1962, to the Anna Wintour-hosted ball yesterday.
Speaking to US Vogue, Kardashian revealed she had lost a lot of weight to fit into it.
“This is Marilyn Monroe’s dress – it’s 60 years old. She wore this when she sang happy birthday to President John F Kennedy,” Kardashian told US Vogue.
“It came with armed guards and gloves. It didn’t fit me. I said, give me three weeks and I had to lose 16 pounds (7kg) down today to be able to fit this.”
Kardashian revealed the lengths she went to in order to fit into Monroe’s dress. “I would wear a sauna suit twice a day, run on the treadmill … and just eat the cleanest veggies and proteins. I didn’t starve myself, but it was so strict”.
“When it didn’t fit me I wanted to cry because it can’t be altered at all,” Kardashian told US Vogue.
Now, Kardashian has been criticised by body image and eating disorder experts, who have branded her comments problematic.
A spokeswoman for The Butterfly Foundation – the Australian organisation for those with eating disorders and body image issues – said: “As one of the most famous celebrities of this generation, Kim has a level of responsibility to be mindful of the way she speaks about her body, food, diet and exercise knowing she has almost unparalleled influence in mainstream media”.
In a statement, the spokeswoman said: “The language Kim has used heavily equates weight loss with feelings of joy and happiness and negatively reinforces a feeling of worthlessness when an item of clothing doesn’t fit”.
She continued: “Kim’s choice of words heavily undermines the work of the body positivity and acceptance movements that have consistently reminded us it’s OK to go up a size if something doesn’t fit, and that we shouldn’t have to change our bodies to fit into an item of clothing.”
The Butterfly Foundation spokeswoman added: “So, while Kim is garnishing headlines and praise, we need to also acknowledge this language carries a harmful message that could have a significant impact on others”.
This is not the first time Kardashian’s views on body image and dieting have been slammed. She has been called out previously for spruiking appetite suppressant lollipops, waist trainers (her brand, Skims, still sells the waist-cinching garments), and weight loss supplements.
Meantime, Kardashian’s outfit also drew criticism from Marilyn Monroe experts, who said she shouldn’t have worn it.
“I am extremely disappointed to see this 60-year-old, iconic dress being worn in public,” Michelle Morgan, author of the 2018 book The Girl: Marilyn Monroe, the Seven Year Itch, and the Birth of an Unlikely Feminist, told Page Six.
“The gown is extremely fragile and has been previously kept in temperature-controlled conditions, but now here it is, not only being worn, but also in a red carpet environment, where anything could have happened to it,” she continued.
But a spokesperson for Ripley’s Believe It or Not – which owns Monroe’s dress – said Kardashian had the “utmost respect” for the garment, and didn’t wear body makeup to the Met Gala, so as not to damage it.
“This was no easy decision for Ripley’s, however, Kim Kardashian has continued to show the utmost respect for this opportunity and historic garment,” the Ripley’s spokesperson said in a statement. “From extensive research to following guidelines such as no body makeup, only wearing the dress for the short red-carpet appearance, and making absolutely no alterations, she has become a steward — and added to — its history.”
The Ripley’s spokesperson confirmed no damage had been done to the dress.
INSIDE MET GALA PARTIES
The head-turning fashion didn’t stop at the Met Gala, with stars baring all – and we mean all – at the after parties.
There were sexy takes on LBDs, a see-through lace set, and crystal-embellished bralets on display at New York hotspot, Zero Bond.
Wearing a glittering Saint Laurent chain-mail bra, Hailey Bieber led the charge teaming underwear-as-outerwear with a blazer and high-waisted leather shorts, with a pair of strappy red stilettos.
It was a dramatic departure from the ivory silk Saint Laurent halter dress that she wore on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Kendall Jenner continued her Miu Miu obsession, wearing a see-through lace top and skirt combination, complete with a pair of apricot nana knickers.
At the Met Gala, she had worn a goth-like Prada crop top and ruffled skirt, raising eyebrows due to her absentbrows, which had been bleached to the point of invisibility.
Other stars who partied at Zero Bond after the official Met Gala was done included Olivia Rodrigo, Addison Rae and Blake Lively.
With a Marilyn Monroe dress, every Kardashian and Jenner, and a string of Australian stars – Wintour’s annual Met Gala more than turned heads.
Likened to the fashion equivalent of the Oscars, this year’s theme was “gilded glamour”, inspired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s exhibition, In America: An Anthology of Fashion.
In a scene reminiscent of her Gossip Girl era, Lively turned heads in a custom Versace gown, with details inspired by the roof at NYC’s Grand Central Station.
Wearing a striped Christopher John Rogers dress and Carrie Bradshaw-esque headpiece, Sarah Jessica Parker told Vogue: “Rules have been broken a little bit”.
Among the guests were a string of Australians – Euphoria star Jacob Elordi was part of the Burberry brigade and Miranda Kerr channelled Cinderella in a ivory tulle Oscar de la Renta gown.
Anyone who needs support for eating disorders and body image issues is urged to contact the Butterfly Foundation on 1800 334 673.
Originally published as Met Gala 2022: Kim Kardashian blasted over extreme ‘Marilyn Monroe dress’ weight loss
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