What’s the ‘Loewe boys hotel,’ and why does everyone want in?

Monday night’s Met Gala is on everyone’s lips, but the hotel where the Gala’s famous attendees got ready was just as exciting — and just as secretive. 

Ahead of the Gala, a video of Challengers star Mike Faist entering the Carlyle Hotel in New York City went viral. At first, people were simply enamored with the bizarre way he was holding his suitcase: by the side strap with the handle extended.

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But when one commenter pointed out that Faist was set to be dressed by fashion house Loewe for the Gala and “all the Loewe boys are staying at that hotel,” folks started imagining what was happening inside the Carlyle, redubbed the “Loewe boys hotel.”

With Challengers mania still going strong, people were particularly excited that Faist and his co-star Josh O’Connor were both wearing Loewe, and thus would be reuniting somewhere in the hotel. Fans couldn’t stop posting about the lengths they’d go to to get inside the hotel with their celebrity crushes, from busting down the doors to seducing them with a dance.

Others wondered what the Loewe boys were actually up to in their eponymous hotel. Having a sleepover, perhaps? Or living out a Challengers fantasy?

they’re having pillow fights and such

— simone ! (@parasocialyte) May 6, 2024

they’re kissing

— physically imposing bald austin butler (@meatprison_) May 6, 2024

they acting out challengers scenes

— ayo (@ayofromthedead) May 6, 2024

Faist’s outfit at the Gala, though, wasn’t as much of a hit as his pre-show antics. He wore a pretty basic suit that paired a simple black jacket with white slacks (already a questionable combo), then pinned a bejeweled turnip to his lapel, an apparent homage to the Gala’s “Garden of Time” dress code.

O’Connor didn’t fare much better, wearing a suit with extra long tails and a pair of floral shoes that divided his fans. Both boys, though, are so charming that no one seemed to mind their fashion faux pas.

Though most of the fervor was understandably for the Challengers boys, Loewe dressed a number of stars for the event, including Omar Apollo, Ayo Edibiri, Dan Levy, Jamie Dornan, Ariana Grande, and Taylor Russell, several of whom filmed a TikTok together ahead of the Gala. 

Apollo raised some of his trademark gay chaos to close it out, saying, “I’m gonna pass the phone to somebody who I would have a baby with if I wasn’t a fffff…” As if the Loewe boys hotel wasn’t already enticing enough.

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