The Metropolitan Museum of Art has canceled a planned exhibition honoring British fashion designer John Galliano amid significant backlash stemming from his past antisemitic and racist remarks. The retrospective, scheduled to open in May 2027 as the spring exhibition of the Costume Institute and the opening event of the Met Gala, will be replaced by another show to be announced at a later date.

The decision was announced on Monday following discussions between Galliano and museum officials. Max Hollein, the Met’s director and CEO, stated that the cancellation was a mutual decision. Galliano expressed "great sadness" over the withdrawal but acknowledged the pain caused by his previous comments and said he remained "fully accountable" to the Jewish and Asian communities affected by his words.

Galliano’s controversy dates back to 2010 and 2011, when he was recorded making hateful antisemitic and anti-Asian statements during public incidents in Paris. Among the most widely publicized remarks were his intoxicated declarations of love for Adolf Hitler and threats referencing the Holocaust. In 2011, a French court convicted him of public insults on the basis of religion, origin, and ethnicity, resulting in a suspended fine. Following these events, Galliano lost his position as creative director at Christian Dior, a role he had held since 1996.

In the years since, Galliano has undergone rehabilitation and has engaged with Jewish organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League and the Central Synagogue in London to better understand Judaism and the Holocaust. His fashion career was revived with a position at Maison Margiela from 2014 onward, and he received support from influential figures including Anna Wintour, the global editorial director of Vogue and a longtime Met Gala organizer. Wintour praised Galliano’s decision to cancel the exhibit, calling it "very courageous" and asserted that his career is not defined solely by his past misconduct.

Despite these efforts at rehabilitation, the announcement of the exhibition drew widespread criticism from Jewish leaders, political figures, museum donors, and others. New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, daughter of a Holocaust survivor, described the initial decision to honor Galliano as a "gut punch" to the Jewish community amid rising antisemitism. Several donors reportedly threatened to withdraw financial support, and some community leaders expressed concern that the timing of the gala—originally slated for May 3, which coincides with Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day—would add further pain.

Critics argued that honoring Galliano risked normalizing antisemitism and downplaying the severity of his past statements, whereas others questioned whether the exhibition was an appropriate form of atonement. Some commentators called the museum’s initial choice a serious lapse in judgment and governance.

Galliano, nearly 65, acknowledged in his statement that meaningful atonement requires ongoing responsibility demonstrated by listening, learning, and conduct over time rather than a singular gesture such as an exhibition. He expressed a desire not to cause further distraction or controversy that might overshadow the Met Costume Institute’s work.

The Met Museum reiterated that details on a replacement exhibition and the 2027 Met Gala will be announced in due course. The annual gala remains one of the most prominent events on the global fashion calendar and a significant fundraising event for the Costume Institute. The cancellation marks a rare instance in which a major, planned retrospective at the institution was withdrawn amid public controversy.