Fans of Hudson Williams and Heated Rivalry first got a taste of the star wearing a bold eyeliner look right here on Bazaar.com back in December 2025. (In fact, a photo from that interview is still his Instagram profile picture.) But Williams just stepped out on the 2026 Met Gala carpet wearing a dramatic winged liner look that takes his love for glam—and cinema—to the next level.
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Williams paired his baby-blue Balenciaga jacket, pants, and train with thick, black eye shadow winged out at the edges and metallic red and blue shadow traced across his lid, up toward the brow and down the inner corner. His hair was slicked back, with two pieces curled inward, drawing even more attention to his eyes.
Williams’s go-to makeup, hair, and grooming artist, Aika Flores, tells Bazaar.com exclusively that the inspiration for the look was “white swan transforming into black swan”—a nod to the 2010 film Black Swan. “I was inspired by the idea of transformation —a journey where innocence gives way and grace takes on a darker edge,” Flores says. “It’s like the white swan shedding its softness to become something sharper, untouchable, and entirely reborn.”
Flores “diffused, sculpted, and layered” with the Chanel Les Beiges Palettes in Golden and Deep and the Chanel Les 9 Ombres High Intensity Eyeshadow Palettes in The Space Traveler and The Daring Muse.
©Fox Searchlight/Courtesy Everett Collection
Natalie Portman in the 2010 film
Williams previously shared with Bazaar that it’s one of his dreams to work with Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky. “And then, if Darren Aronofsky does his original shit, where he’s making people go through the worst experience a human has ever had? Then please make me live the worst life possible,” he said.
The actor was spotted in a bathrobe in the lobby of the Mark hotel before his Met Gala debut, chatting and posing for photos with actress Odessa A’Zion. To get his look, Flores used Dyson hair tools and Redken styling products, including the Redken Control Hairspray and Redken Big Blowout Heat Protecting Jelly.
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Williams’s costar Connor Storrie also hit this year’s Met Gala carpet, wearing a perfect suit and silky polka-dot blouse from Saint Laurent, his golden hair brushed and styled into glossy pin curls across his forehead.