PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio/AP) — Philly native Colman Domingo has been named one of the chairs of next year’s Met Gala.
The Oscar-nominated actor joins rappers Pharrell Williams and A$AP Rocky; Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton and LeBron James to help the Metropolitan Museum of Art launch an exhibit examining Black style in menswear over the centuries.
"Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” will be launched by the Met Gala on May 5, 2025 and open to the public on May 10. A precise dress code for the star-studded gala — tailored specifically to the exhibit's theme — will be announced early next year.
It will be the first fashion exhibit at the Met in over 20 years to focus exclusively on menswear, which explains the almost all-male slate of hosts. (Vogue editor Anna Wintour, who oversees the gala each year, rounds out the list of co-chairs.)
In an Instagram post, Domingo thanked Wintour for adding him to the panel, calling it “an exceptional honor.”
Domingo, a Temple University alum, was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for playing civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, in the biopic “Rustin.” He is also known for his roles in movies such as “Selma,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Zola”; and in TV series including AMC’s “Fear the Walking Dead” and HBO’s “Euphoria.” Most recently, he starred in the independent musical drama “Sing Sing.”
Museum director and CEO Max Hollein said the exhibit, which will run through Oct. 26, 2025 — longer than previous Met fashion exhibits — would explore "the importance of sartorial style to the formation of Black identities in the Atlantic diaspora," and would celebrate "the power of style as a democratic tool for rejecting stereotypes and accessing new possibilities." He noted it was inspired by a book, "Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity" by Monica L. Miller, a Barnard professor and guest curator of the show.