A week ago, Renee Zellweger wrote a “scathing” essay at HuffPo in which she attempted to deny that she had undergone any (voluntary?) plastic surgery. She went on and on about how we were all monsters for daring to notice that she looked different a few years back. While she had some valid points about how women are judged on superficial things, and how the internet can be cruel to women in particular, it also seemed like Zellweger was not really telling the truth about what she had gotten done. Which is fine in the sense that she doesn’t owe us an explanation for her private and personal plastic surgery decisions. But on the other hand, don’t blatantly lie to the public at large and try to “shame” society for noticing that you look different.
Interestingly enough, HuffPo published a “counterpoint” op-ed called “I’m Not An Awful Person For Wondering About Renee Zellweger’s Face.” You can read it here. My favorite part:
But [Zellweger’s essay] annoyed me because I’m sick of being told that if you walk into a room — or in this case, onto the red carpet in 2014 — looking like a totally different person from the last time I saw you, I’m morally bereft for wondering what the hell happened to your face. It’s not OK to be nasty or cruel, but most people are just trying to make sense of what they’re looking at. And you don’t get to tell them they don’t have that right.
What’s with this weird argument people keep making that it’s somehow anti-woman or anti-feminist, when faced with a dramatically changed appearance that looks very much like it’s due to cosmetic surgery, to do anything other than pretend you don’t notice anything? Isn’t the opposite — pretending people’s appearances just magically change for no reason — actually the anti-woman thing to do? To act like rich people’s wrinkles just disappear? Like their lips get plumper and their thighs thinner by magic?
Yep. Anyway, that leads me to this next story. Weeks ago, a critic for Variety got in trouble for daring to suggest that Renee doesn’t look much like Bridget Jones these days, and it was disconcerting to see this new-face on screen. To be fair, the critic went WAY overboard and took it to a ridiculous level. But it seems like that critic was merely a harbinger of reviews to come.
Renée Zellweger — who blasted Variety’s critic for an essay on her looks and whether they’ve been altered — is still under the microscope. Zellweger wrote of the “invented scandal,” “I did not make a decision to alter my face.”
Critics at this week’s NYC screening of Zellweger’s “Bridget Jones’s Baby” remained fixated on her face. Said one, “The smoothness of [her] forehead seems to vary randomly throughout.”
While I think critics are going to be careful about how they write about Renee’s face in the reviews for Bridget Jones’s Baby, I also think that there are going to be lots and lots of references about how Renee doesn’t really look like herself.
Final thing: Hugh Grant was on Watch What Happens Live last night and when they put up images of all his female costars, he didn’t recognize Renee (because they used a recent photo). Ouch.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Another Jennifer Grey.
I completely disagree. Jennifer Grey was literally unrecognizable after her nose job. Renee looks the same to me, with the exception of her eyes looking a bit more open. She is not free of wrinkles, her face looks pretty natural to me. I honestly don’t get this “new face” narrative.
To me she looks totally different, especially around her eyes and her mouth. There’s the lack of overall facial movement. Even her co-star who has spent time with her over the past Bridget Jones movies didn’t recognize her.
I think this is subjective, as some people have strong face recognition skills some don’t.
Matt Damon said on a talk show last year that he has an arrangement with Mark Wahlberg that they’ll sign each other’s autographs as fans regularly confuse them. Personally I don’t understand how someone could mistake one with the other.
To some people Renee looks slightly different and I’ve seen some commenters saying they didn’t recognise her at all.
Renee now looks like a random lady in the mall. She does not have any recognizable feature that I can pick out that ids her. If her name wasn’t labelled on these photos and there wasn’t a controversy, I would just scan this site and wonder why is a random lady news here? She killed her brand which was her eyes and parts of her face (her lips look different too).
It’s odd, because I have seen photos from the same event above, and in those photos her forehead wrinkles were prominent and clearly unbotoxed. Now, her head looks smooth. Huh. Maybe photo agencies adjust the touch ups based on the story?
Thank you for this. I thought I was the only one who only sees a very minor difference and does not understand why this is such a big deal!
Agree. She looks completely different, that’s why it’s so notable.
In the photographs above I don’t see Renee at all. I suspect it will be different in other photos and in motion.
She looked fine in the trailer.
Yep, different forehead, different eyes, different smile, cheeks different. Is her chin different? Her face is so much longer now.
As Jellybean says, you can get a glimpse of Renee from time to time but as far as I’m concerned everything that made her unique is gone.
I was wondering about her hooded eyes. They were so trademark along with her rosebud lips and round face- however those hooded eyes may have gotten really crepe-y. Something I once thought of as beautiful in my grandmother -when I was a child and didn’t have the world’s idea of beauty and worth. My point is, perhaps those trademark eyes became overly crepe-y so she changed them. I agreed it makes her look ordinary now, but I surmise the alternative was a notable sign of what hollywood views as non beautiful. One cant’ win with today’s standards of acceptable.
Leave her alone. There are more important things to worry about than whether someone has had work done to their face. Her face, her deal. The way she is minutely scrutinized feature by feature and then viciously slammed is pathetic and mean.
She’s being slammed because she refuses to admit that she had work done. Not because of how she looks.
“But [Zellweger’s essay] annoyed me because I’m sick of being told that if you walk into a room — or in this case, onto the red carpet in 2014 — looking like a totally different person from the last time I saw you, I’m morally bereft for wondering what the hell happened to your face. It’s not OK to be nasty or cruel, but most people are just trying to make sense of what they’re looking at. And you don’t get to tell them they don’t have that right.”
THIS ALL DAY, They STAY pretending like we don’t have eyes and previous footage of them doesnt exist (See: All Kardashians for ex)
Yeah… unrealistic and artificial beauty standards would be checked and exposed, not condoned, in an ideal feminist world. It’s not okay to shame women for altering their appearance in industries that revolve around appearance, but it’s fine to have EYES and realize what’s happening and why.
The Kardashians are a good example, because on one hand I admire the fact that they won’t let others shame them for being sexual, embracing nudity, even being vain, etc. But they don’t *actually* embrace their bodies at all; they slice and dice and tweak and tuck and then want credit for loving their artificial curves and showing off their artificial faces. They don’t deserve to be shamed (for that, at least)… but society will not benefit from letting the lies masquerade as truth. Kids, for one, need to know that their original faces and bodies are good enough.
I thought that initial photo was Chelsea Handler with no makeup…
Who is cleaning this Blueberry Donut you made me Spit Out Cackling?? I surely Will NOT be the one!
🍩🍩🍩😂
When I looked quickly I thought it was Caitlyn Jenner.
I saw that pic sideways first and thought, “Hillary Clinton.” Then my phone rotated and I said, “Way off. It’s Caitlin.” I scrolled down and said, “Renee? Uh, I don’t think so Celebitchy.”
Actually Orangino’s wife (Melania T for those who don’t know who Orangino is) looks like CJ. I think that’s who CJ wanted to look like when she became a woman.
I refuse to ID Orangino by his given name.
Bridget Jones’s Baby looks both stupid and ridiculous. Renee is a fairly classic example of the Oscar curse.
Oh for the love of crap. She had surgery and decided to act like a child about it. That’s all that happened. Having your eyelids done can in fact be due to medical reasons. Are we owed an explanation? No. But we WILL wonder when one of the most famous actresses shows up to the set of a sequel to an insanely popular and beloved movie and looks like she had work done. I think she still looks like Bridget. Who had her eyes done. It’s not a big deal but it’s also not misogynist to talk about it. Really, who hasn’t had work done in Hollywood???
Exactly right! And LOL-“for the love of crap!”
oohh, wouldn’t that have been a great, very bridget thing to do. Get an eye job but then pretend you didn’t. So meta!
Renee, it is certainly your right to mess with your face. And it’s my right (and everyone else’s to express confusion/shock over your new face. The fact is that the new face is minus the cute factor of the old one. Sorry, the truth is not always pleasant.
Did they actually read her piece? She said that she accepts that people talk and the tabloid industry drives that. Her problem was that the mainstream media had taken it up and were turning her into poster child for self esteem issue.
I personally don’t even get the fixation on peoples appearance, it’s the kind of the thing you notice once or twice and get over. I don’t get why anybody would write think pieces about actor Y and his hairline or actress X and her eyelids. If you can get over Bruce transitioning to Caitlyn, you can get over an eyelid surgery without turning it into a 1000 worded article. This is the new Renee, note it to yourself and respectfully move on.
See, I don’t think she said she accepts that people talk about it. The quote:
“just one more story in the massive smut pile generated every day by the tabloid press and fueled by exploitative headlines and folks who practice cowardly cruelty from their anonymous internet pulpits.”
She’s calling people who talk about these kinds of things cowardly and cruel. It’s not a case of a “Oh, there’s always going to be gossip.” brush off. She keeps using words like cruel, ridicule, and other words like that as if she’d just undergone the worst attack of her life.
She went on to say “but that the possibility alone was discussed among respected journalists and became a public conversation is a disconcerting illustration of news/entertainment confusion and society’s fixation on physicality.”
She makes it clear that she’s disgusted that it was even brought up. It didn’t seem to be annoyance about becoming a poster child for self esteem issues – just the fact that anyone would even dare speak of the fact that she DOES look difference.
For a normal person, I’d agree with your second paragraph more. But Renee literally makes money off of her appearance. She’s an actress. She is paid to look and act a part. When she’s profiting from being a recognizable face – and then that recognition is lost, I think it’s fair to comment. She doesn’t deserve to be attacked or mocked for it – but people should be allowed to point it out. These people make their money writing about the entertainment world – it’s well within their realm to comment.
This is why I can’t stand celebrity feminism. When feminism is simply a useful “tool”. It’s just used to shield and insulate them from criticism. Particularly when said criticism is valid. UGH.
From some angles, I thought she looked like the “new” Carrie Fisher, who couldn’t move her face at all in The Force Awakens.
Denial doesn’t change the truth. I can tell people a can didn’t fall full impact on my mouth yesterday while reaching and that I didn’t get five stitches on my upper lip and look like Rocky Balboa after the fight, but that won’t change the fact that it happened. I am blessed though, not a tooth was injured….. 🙁
Ouch! Sorry you’re hurt.
Thanks Giddy…..trying to be grateful for what did happen as opposed to what could have happened. So weird how when we get out of bed in the morning, we don’t have a clue what lies ahead. Probably a good thing!
Get well soon, Nancy.
I think a lot of her face change has to do with aging, she’s not as plumped cheeked anymore. No matter how skinny she got she still had round plump cheeks. Her eyes do look better and I’ll bet anything she had it done for medical reasons. If it were purely cosmetic it would have been more drastic, i.e. Courteney Cox.
Exactly! That’s what I think too. In her photos she just looks “aged” and not plumped. Another thing, it’s her business. If she were writing a book like Christie Brinkley did and not fessing up to plastic surgery, etc., then I would be critical. I think Renee looks fine.
I’m curious, does Tom Cruise receive the same amount of criticism, and are there multiple articles dedicated to all the procedures he has done to his face?
It’s ridiculous that this conversation keeps happening.
Tom Cruise actually has good surgeons. Let’s be realistic, he had stuff done but it was very minor and the changes were imperceptible. Christie Brinkley is the same as well.
If you want a full on comparison of people talking about a male celeb with noticeable work done – look no further than Mickey Roarke. During his Oscar run, there were a lot of comments on celeb blogs (here too) about his bad plastic surgery.
It’s not a sexist thing. If a male or female in the public arena starts looking different people will notice and comment on it.
I liked the old Renee. She had squinty eyes but she also had actual eyebrows some distance above them. She looks so much older now. Before she seemed “soft,” now she looks “hard.” If she were not already in a series, would she have work as this new somber person?
http://plasticsurgerygal.com/botox/renee-zellweger-before-and-after-plastic-surgery-pictures
I call BS on her denials. I think she definitely had her eyelids done. However “done” is to her, she had to have had her eyelids lifted because of how hooded her eyes always were. That is 100% different and not from being in love. I also think she’s just aging and as we age, our faces change. So the cute little chubby cheeks that used to be up closer to her eyes are thinning out and not there, either. Subtle changes like that can make a big difference, but combined with the eyes is a little Jennifer Grey, for sure. I know when I first saw the photos of her, I had NO CLUE it was our Bridget.
I guess I’m the only one here who doesn’t think she had big surgery. I also don’t understand why she would still have to look like 25 years ago. She aged, lost weight, combs her hair the other way, and doesn’t fill out her eyebrows anymore. I honestly don’t see much change, except maybe for a little lift of the eyelids.
siri, I am with you. Renee went through several rounds of weight gain and weight loss for various film roles. That alone will change the shape of your face and features. If she had anything done, it was a slight eyelid lift to remove sagging skin from the weight gain/loss/gain/loss. She looks squinty when she is super thin. At the moment, she is not super thin. I think she looks fine.
somewhere there were pictures that did not do the jump from, say, 2002 to now but gradually and it did not seem as jarring. It seems like she is in a no-win situation -whether she admits to it or not. (but I dont think she handled it well although she seems very confident. And did this all happen post-Bradley Cooper?)
I think she needs to fill in her eyebrows and put some color on her face. To me that’s a huge difference in her before and after faces. She’s one long pale face with no “zones”. at least emphasize your eyes or lips or something. Even a strong brow. There is nothing to break up the unending monochrome of her face
I am so so sick of
Celebs….they only want good press or press they agree with. Then the paps and journalists are their best friends. If they don’t write an ass kissing article the celebs – who are beyond privileged and need to wake the f- up – to real issues– then they act outraged and like a victim. Seriously Renee you have had a facelift and Alot of work and fillers. Stop insulting everyones intelligence- and stop acting outraged. Grow up. Sadly to me who used to like your work you are now annoying and look older with this work and like you could now be Martha Stewart’s sister. And the only job she took was yet again another BJ film. Yawn. So not interesting but clearly you need the money. Start acting more bravely and honestly. Seriously. I do feel bad for your horrible surgery. What a big mistake!
Reminds me of when I moved to LA as a twenty something and, being of humble means, it took me years to figure out why my coworkers my age or younger had nice cars, clothes, took vacations, had apartments instead of rented a room, etc. It was so simple when i figured it out! Oh, their parents supplemented or outright bought their cars, insured them, and gave them money constantly.
But they would rarely to never disclose this because I guess, why would you? But it is confusing for a normal person. It can make you think “so what am I doing wrong?”
Thats how I feel like it is with plastic surgery too. We all are like huh? but if you even slightly bring it up, crickets, denial, or sanctimony.
I like Zellwegger. But I was disappointed in her article.
I really like Renee and I believe her when she says she didn’t the make choice to alter her appearance (ie. I believe the eye surgery she had was necessary blepharoplasty). And while I don’t think she owes anyone an explanation about a wholly private medical procedure, it would have saved her so much public grief had she just said as much and left it there. It would have stopped all the speculation and the really unpleasant online noise (and it has been really unpleasant) and very probably generated a much more sympathetic and informed conversation.
She looks like a more swollen Robin Wright.
Wright looks a hundred times better. B*tch knows the art of cosmetic procedures to the bit. She should actually write a book on how is meant to be done. She manages to looks her age, move her face (which is so important for an actor) and have expression lines while looking fresh and natural. Kudos to her Doc too. (that would be Dr. Colbert)
I go to Dr. Colbert a couple times a year… he really is great at what he does. Nothing over the top and very natural. He’s not about making you look 20–he makes you look the best for your age.
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As for Renee, she had her eyelids done but so what… they were extremely hooded and that only gets worse with age, it was going to be mandatory at some point to preserve her vision. I don’t know why she would write what she did, it’s a little ridiculous at this point.
She’s definitely had a lot of work done. I always find it annoying when people who very obviously have had work done, try to deny it. It’s the same with people who lose a ton of weight and say they did it through healthy eating and exercise when they have had a gadstric band fitted. Be honest and stop treating your fans as idiots.
Does she think denying will take our eyes away? I can hardly recognize her botoxed out face and obvious work. Who is she kidding?
Herself.
Oh, come on Renee.
I can’t even recognize your face and I watched most of your movies.
If I would be her I would not deny the plastic surgery I had done=wouldn’t lie…and if I didn’t want to admit it…I just wouldn’t discuss it.
Renee clearly had a lot of work done, she used to be very thin until she had to gain weight for a role, so it’s not the weight.
I think she had her eyes done, probably face lift, lots of Botox, some fillers, laser peels, neck lift
and some work was done around her mouth and something with her nose.
Most actors get some plastic surgery…slowly over the years.
She might have gotten a lot in a short period of time that’s why it stands out to me so much.
The lying is hard to take for two reasons; first, it’s saying she thinks the public is so stupid that we don’t know the difference. And second, it’s like saying “OTHER women may age and need work done to look like this, but NOT ME, because I am just SOOOOO naturally genetically superior!” Give it a rest Zellweger (and other liars like Kate Winslet, Jennifer Aniston, and pretty much all of them – and male actors too).
I think she looks a little different but I totally recognize her.
When I watched the new arrested development episodes I couldn’t get over how Portia looked so different. To me that was way too much work done. JMO
I think they did that on purpose with the new AD because Portia de Rossi still looks pretty much the same. The most obvious thing was that it looked like her nose was a lot smaller, and like her character had a facelift. I think that was just feeding into the continuing joke about her nose so maybe it was implying she had another one in the following years. Anyway I think it was on purpose as a character thing but not Portia herself that had work done.
I think she’s had her eyes lifted, but lost a bit of weight and aged throughout the face…so yes she looks different, but I don’t think it’s ALL surgery/botox
Her lack of eyebrows and the tan are what throw these pictures off for me. She has NEVER been photographed before with a tan (I assume it is a spray job). She has always been known for flawless alabaster skin, and the tan was a bad idea. I think she should have gone for her normal skin tone and filled her eyebrows in, but softly.