Kim Kardashian wears Marilyn Monroe's dress on Met Gala 2022 red carpet

Gentlemen prefer blondes, indeed.

Kim Kardashian hit the Met Gala 2022 red carpet on Monday in full Marilyn Monroe mode, sporting freshly dyed blond hair and an iconic dress made famous by the Hollywood bombshell.

Kim Kardashian Met Gala 2022
The reality star stole the show at the 2022 Met Gala on Monday.
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Kardashian sparkled up the Met steps in the exact Jean Louis gown Monroe wore to sing "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to John F. Kennedy during his 45th birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in 1962.

Dubbed the "world's most expensive dress," the crystal-studded creation set a Guinness World Record when Ripley's Believe It or Not! acquired it at auction for a whopping $4.8 million (over $5 million including auction fees).

Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson Met Gala 2022
Kardashian attended fashion's biggest night out with boyfriend Pete Davidson.
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"The idea really came to me after the gala in September last year. I thought to myself, what would I have done for the American theme if it had not been the Balenciaga look? What's the most American thing you can think of? And that's Marilyn Monroe," Kardashian told Vogue.

"For me the most Marilyn Monroe moment is when she sang 'Happy Birthday,' to JFK, it wasthat look," she added. "Nowadays everyone wears sheer dresses, but back then that was not the case … In a sense, it's the original naked dress. That's why it was so shocking."

Kim Kardashian Met Gala 2022
The Skims founder dazzled on the red carpet with the "SNL" star by her side.
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Fans began speculating that Kardashian might choose the unforgettable design for the "In America: An Anthology of Fashion"-themed Met Gala last month, when the fashion mogul and boyfriend Pete Davidson paid a visit to the Ripley's Believe It or Not! headquarters in Orlando, Florida, where they reportedly spent three hours.

What's more, Kardashian told "Access Hollywood" in early April that her attendance at the gala was conditional upon whether or not she could fit into her outfit.

"I think it will be up to the last minute because it can't be tailored, so I have to fit into it exactly," she teased of her look. "So we will see if I can shape-shift for the night."

Marilyn Monroe sings "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to JFK in 1962.
Marilyn Monroe sings "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to JFK in 1962.
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It makes sense that Ripley's wouldn't allow Monroe's gown to be altered — even for one of the world's most famous women. Dotted with 2,500 sparkling stones, the skintight dress was custom-made for the "How to Marry a Millionaire" actress, who was sewn into it prior to taking the stage for JFK's birthday serenade.

Recalling the first time she tried on the special piece, Kardashian told Vogue, "I always thought she was extremely curvy. I imagined I might be smaller in some places where she was bigger and bigger in places where she was smaller. So when it didn't fit me I wanted to cry."

Marilyn Monroe dress
Custom-made to fit Monroe, the Jean Louis design features 2,500 crystals.
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So for the several weeks that followed before the gala, the star dieted and exercised to fit into Monroe's gown, dropping 16 pounds in the process. And at her final fitting, the dress fit like a glove.

"I wanted to cry tears of joy when it went up," Kardashian said.

She only wound up wearing the original up the Met steps — with Davidson's help — before changing into a replica, also owned by Ripley's, for the night's festivities.

"I'm extremely respectful to the dress and what it means to American history," she told Vogue ahead of the party. "I would never want to sit in it or eat in it or have any risk of any damage to it and I won't be wearing the kind of body makeup I usually do."

Kylie Jenner, Khloe Kardashian, Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner
Kardashian joined her mother Kris Jenner and sisters Kylie and Khloé for a photo inside the event, looking more relaxed in her replica gown.
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Kardashian is famous for her serious commitment to Met Gala fashion, having attended the 2021 event wearing a fully-masked Balenciaga outfit and squeezed into a tightly corseted Thierry Mugler dress in 2019.

She previously channeled Monroe for Vogue Brazil in 2015 — and even her estranged husband, Kanye West, has compared the two stars.

"Kim is Marilyn Monroe. You know that. She was controversial. She [is] controversial," West said during a 2013 radio interview.

Kim Kardashian at 2022 Met Gala
Kardashian wore Monroe's gown on the steps of the 2022 Met Gala before changing into a replica for the party.
Getty Images for The Met Museum/

That same year, former French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld issued a similar statement, telling Time Out, "She's controversial, but so was Marilyn Monroe, and I always like controversial people."

Plus, with its glitzy embellishments and champagne hue, the look certainly fit this year's "gilded glamour" dress code.