These Candid Photos From Inside Met Gala 2024 Prove It Was a Ball

What happens at the Met Gala doesn't always stay at the Met Gala.

While photographers are lined up on both sides of Metropolitan Museum of Art's staircase to capture red carpet arrivals, the New York City ball itself actually has a strict "No Cameras" policy put in place by event chair Anna Wintour. (Click here to see all the fashion from the 2024 Met Gala.)

As Vogue alum Sylvana Ward Durrett once explained, the fashion editor is "sort of an old-school traditionalist," so she prefers that phones stay inside guests' pockets and have professional photographers capture all the party moments.

"She likes a dinner party where people are actually speaking to each other," Ward Durrett, who worked closely with Wintour on multiple Met Galas, told the New York Post in 2016. "We aren't sitting over people's shoulders, but if it's an obvious thing we might gently remind them."

Still, stars over the years have evaded the rule by sneakily snapping a few shots. For instance, Kylie Jenner famously turned the museum's restroom into a celeb hotspot in 2017, when she took a selfie with Kendall Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Brie Larson, Paris Jackson, Frank Ocean, Lily Aldridge, A$AP Rocky, Elizabeth Chambers, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Ashton Sanders and Slick Woods. 

Six years later, Billie Eilish was happier than ever to snap a photo with Elle Fanning, Maya Hawke and Halle Bailey in front of the same mirror.

 

And with this year's guest list packed with A-listers—including co-chairs Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny and Chris Hemsworth—there were plenty of star-studded hangouts in and out of the washroom.

Keep reading to see all the candid moments from fashion's biggest night.

Don't miss E!'s Live From E!: 2024 Met Gala red carpet Monday, May 6, starting at 6 p.m. for every must-see moment from fashion's biggest night. And tune in to E! News Tuesday, May 7, at 11 p.m. for a full recap of every jaw-dropping look and all the behind-the-scenes moments.