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Jimmy Fallon's Met Gala Recap Includes Hilariously Awkward Celeb Interactions

Fallon showed the Tonight Show audience what the Met Gala invite looks like, and told funny stories about hanging with Penelope Cruz and Gracie Abrams. 

By Christopher Rudolph

It's not everyday that you're accidentally insulted by an Oscar winner, and that's what happened to Jimmy Fallon at this year's Met Gala.

How to Watch

Watch The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on NBC weeknights at 11:35/10:35c and next day on Peacock

On Monday, May 6, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Host attended the annual star-studded bash held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. After attending the celebrity event of the season, he had to provide the Tonight Show audience with a recap of the party the following night.

The Anna Wintour-directed evening was filled with gorgeous jaw-dropping fashion, some of the biggest celebrities in the world — and, for Fallon, a couple of hilariously awkward interactions with A-listers that he was happy to share.

"I had a great night last night, I went to the Met Gala. I sat at the Chanel table, I wore Dior," Fallon told The Tonight Show audience on May 7.

"I'm going to Paris for the Olympics, so I figured I have to work on my French. And so far, so good," he continued, briefly slipping into a French accent.

"I sat with some really fun people at the Chanel table. Ariana Grande surprised everybody," he continued, referring to the concert she performed inside the museum. "She was amazing, and then she introduced Cynthia Erivo, who has been on the show. They did something from Wicked and crushed it."

The night sounds so-far-so-good. But during the dinner portion of the evening, when Fallon sat next to Penelope Cruz, things took an awkward turn.

RELATED: Why Anya Taylor-Joy Said Jimmy Fallon "Saved My Life" at the Met Gala

"So I got the biggest compliment and biggest insult in the same sentence from Penelope Cruz," he recalled. "I'm just sitting there, I'm eating the dinner, and she goes, 'What are you doing? What's your secret?' I go, 'What?' She goes, 'You look great.'"

Fallon recreated his flattered reaction. "I go, 'Are you talking to me?' She goes, 'What's your secret? You look fantastic.' I go, 'Really?'

'She goes, 'Yeah. You're 56 years old?'' he deadpans. 

''I'm 49 years old," Fallon told Cruz. "She goes, 'Sorry, I thought you said you were 56!' So I thought it was a great compliment — but turns out, no, I just look good for a 56-year-old man."

Jimmy Fallon attends the 2024 Met Gala red carpet

How Gracie Abrams accidentally embarrassed Jimmy Fallon at the Met Gala

Singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams was another table mate of Fallon's, and he kiddingly said that he took a certain moment during the beginning of Grande's performance personally. 

"She kind of did something to me that I don't know I can forgive," he joked. "She did that thing where she stood up because Ariana was coming out, and everyone's kind of dancing, so she stood up to dance... and so then I stood up, and then she sat down."

RELATED: Ariana Grande Singing an Opera Version of "Once Upon a Dream" Will Floor You

"Now what do I do? Now I gotta just dance," Fallon said as he recreated his awkward dancing behind his desk. "But it was a blast! I had such a fun time."

First he brought a puppy to the Kentucky Derby, then he had embarrassing celebrity encounters at the Met Gala — we can only imagine what will happen to Fallon when he arrives in Paris for this summer's Olympics.