• Colman Domingo arrived at the 2025 Met Gala in Valentino.
• The Oscar-nominated actor’s stylists Wayman + Micah referenced art history and the Civil Rights movement with his look.
• The 2025 Met Gala theme is titled “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” which celebrates Black dandyism.

Co-chairing the Met Gala remains one of the highest honors in fashion. Every year, style luminaries and icons descend the famous Met Steps dressed in their couture finest to raise money for The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The style pressure is on—and that goes doubly true for those selected to host the night.

When Colman Domingo found out he would be co-chairing the 2025 Met Gala alongside Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky, Anna Wintour, and honorary co-chair Lebron James, it didn’t take him long to reach out to his styling team. “It all started with a conversation with Colman in November of last year,” says Wayman Bannerman, one half of the styling duo Wayman + Micah, who have been longtime collaborators of the Oscar-nominated actor. “For the theme to be such a thing that’s so passionate to all three of us as collaborators, it’s very special as well.”

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Colman Domingo arrives to the 2025 Met Gala in a blue robe designed by Valentino.

The two worked with Valentino, led by Creative Director Alessandro Michele, to create Domingo’s look. Wearing a royal blue robe with an intricate jewel- and sequin-covered collar, the actor arrived early to the event alongside co-chairs Anna Wintour and Lewis Hamilton. He later revealed a Zoot Suit-inspired tailored separates that included a vest, boutonniere, and black-and-white cravat. Boucheron jewelry, including stunning ear cuffs, and an Omega watch accessorized Domingo’s ensemble.

This year’s exhibit, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” which focuses on scholar Monica Miller’s book Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, represented an opportunity to honor fashion history and celebrate the rule breakers and visionaries of Dandyism through the night’s “Tailored for You” dress code. “We wanted to pay homage to African history, the richness and ruling of that culture of how it impacted [fashion] through the centuries to its current time,” Bannerman tells InStyle in an interview ahead of the first Monday in May.

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Colman Domingo arrives at the 2025 Met Gala wearing a Zoot Suit-inspired Valentino look.

“Micah and I love building visual boards and mood boards together and presenting them to our clientele,” Bannerman says of the months-long creative process. “Pinterest has this innate ability to take whatever is inside of our heads and put it into a beautiful image or series of images.” References on the duo’s mood board included the brocade and jewel tones worn by the Moors in the Medieval and Renaissance periods, as well as images of “the richest man who ever lived,” Mansa Musa, who ruled over the Mali Empire in the 14th century.

“Colman had focused on how he wore a lot of ornate jewels and his robe, which had ornate detailing to represent his royalty,” Micah McDonald adds. “He really wanted to tie it back to that heritage that is just so unspoken about dandyism as a whole. He also wanted to highlight the Zoot Suit Riots and the people continuing to stand up for their expression.”

With its strong roots in fashion history, political activism, and personal relationships, Colman Domingo’s 2025 Met Gala looks will no doubt live on as some of the best of the year—if not of all time.

Read the original article on InStyle