Kim Kardashian had her Marilyn Monroe moment when she wore the actress' 1962 gown to the 2022 Met Gala, but it appears The Kardashians star may have damaged the dress. Aside from host Blake Lively's ode to the Statue of Liberty, Kim's dress was the most talked about look of the night. Unfortunately, while fans admired Blake's creative tribute, Kim's look was being discussed for all the wrong reasons. Whether Marilyn fans thought Kim wearing the dress was an insult to the legend or fashion conservationists thought wearing the 60-year-old dress was risky to its fabric, few people supported Kim's outfit choice.
To add fuel to the already blazing fire, Kim caused more anger when she admitted to an interviewer on the red carpet that she lost 16 pounds in order to fit into the gown. The Kardashians star initially tried on the dress and was denied the opportunity to wear it because it didn't fit her properly. Instead of finding a different look for the night, the ever-determined business mogul went back to the drawing board and returned to the Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum in Orlando, Florida, 16 pounds lighter. Riverdale actress Lili Reinhart didn't take the news well, as the body-positive actress called out Kim on her Instagram Story for promoting dangerous body standards for women.
While Kim swears wearing Marilyn's dress was the right decision and even defended her fast weight loss journey, it seems the dress may not have been returned in the same condition it was lent out in. The @marilynmonroecollection Instagram account shared before and after photos of the gown, which now resides at Ripley's Hollywood location, and it appears there may be some damage to it. In the photos, it's clear that some of the crystals that were sewn on the dress have fallen off, leaving some loose threads hanging. The account captioned the photos, "Just in case you missed it...Missing crystals, and some left hanging by a thread."
The official Marilyn Monroe Collection Instagram account, which has been posting about the dress since Kim wore it, also shared a press release from Ripley's where the museum insisted "great care was taken to preserve this piece of pop culture history." Unfortunately, the images seem to contradict this statement. Marilyn fans flooded the comments as they were incredibly upset to see that their idol's dress had been damaged. One fan wrote, "When that lady was pulling the dress and literally scraping it with her palm i knew it. Just knew crystals would fall." Other fans commented with crying face and broken heart emojis to express their sadness that the dress had been ruined.
Lending out a 60-year-old dress worn by one of the most iconic Hollywood actresses was clearly not the most responsible decision. While the dress has not been completely destroyed by Kim, it would have been in better condition had it not left the museum. Hopefully, the dress' condition will push other fashion conservationists to be more careful with their historic pieces. For future Met Galas, The Kardashians star should stick with some more modern pieces.
The Kardashians streams Thursdays on Hulu.
Source: @marilynmonroecollection/Instagram