Enquirer: Ellen DeGeneres has spent a fortune on lots of “secret” plastic surgery

I’ve never even considered this before, but apparently there were some rumors about this a few years ago. Around 2010, a few sites claimed that Ellen DeGeneres had gotten some subtle tweaking here and there – reducing the bags under her eyes, a small eye lift maybe, but nothing like a full-on facelift. This was around the time when she signed on to American Idol, I guess. You can see some before-and-after shots here and here. Anyway, The Enquirer is polishing up this old chestnut and claiming that Ellen has had a LOT of work done and she continues to get a lot of stuff done, and that she’s secretly very, very vain, and that she spends hours in the makeup chair trying to hide her plastic surgery scars.

TV chatty ELLEN DEGENERES prides herself on her fresh-faced, girl-next-door looks – but sources say she’s one of TV’s vainest stars!

“She spends hours in front of the mirror hiding her secret cosmetic surgery,” an insider on her syndicated talk show told The ENQUIRER.

“Publicly, Ellen is all about achieving a minimal makeup look but the reality is that she’s spent major bucks for a nat­ural-looking face-lift and other cosmetic procedures. The big challenge for her makeup and hair team is to conceal scarring due to the work that she’s had done. It usually takes them at least two and a half hours to give Ellen the peaches-and-cream glow that her fans love.”

Doctors have speculated that the 54-year-old face of Cover Girl cosmetics and former “American Idol” judge has undergone face-, eye-, neck- and brow-lifts. Ellen, who wed actress Portia de Rossi in 2008, is also rumored to have had laser peels to smooth out her complexion as well as frequent Botox injec­tions to eliminate crow’s feet and freshen up her look.

“But Ellen has made a name for herself as the queen of anti-glamour and has never admitted to having any procedures,” said the source. “She hates to portray the image of actually caring about her appearance.”

Still, she needs help to look her best with her crazy schedule, working constantly and keeping long hours.

“The cosmetic procedures she’s had, paired with highly specialized makeup techniques, make Ellen look awake and alert even when she’s completely exhausted,” noted the source. “The bottom line is that even if you are as down to earth as Ellen, in Hollywood your face is your fortune.”

[From National Enquirer]

Looking through the photos… I am willing to believe that Ellen has had some work done. But much like Susan Sarandon’s or even Sharon Stone’s work, it’s subtle and realistic. This is not a 54 year old woman trying to look 29 years old. And yes, she IS 54 years old. I know! She could easily pass for late 30s, early 40s… in some light. That’s how good the work is, I guess. So, do I believe that Ellen is incredibly vain and obsessed with her looks? Not any more or less than the average celebrity woman, you know? And as I’m looking through these photos… I kind of think Ellen needs a better night cream.

Now, Portia looks tweaked and ‘Toxed to high heaven. Jeez.

This is a photo from 2011 – Ellen’s definitely had her neck done since then.

Her neck in 2012:

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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48 Responses to “Enquirer: Ellen DeGeneres has spent a fortune on lots of “secret” plastic surgery”

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  1. carrie says:

    if it’s true,it’s subtle and well-made and she again is herself:it’s ok for me

    • j.eyre says:

      I’m with you – money well spent. No idea if this is true.

    • joan of snark says:

      Totally false! No woman would ever do her face and ignore her neck. It goes neck, forehead, crows feet. No woman would ever do her face and leave a turkey neck! Actually, men don’t either.

  2. Agnes says:

    if that’s true, i’m somehow disappointed in her…and portia is so beautiful, she should take it easy with the botox etc.

    • NYC_girl says:

      I am not disappointed – there are so many women (and men – hello, Kenny Rogers and Bruce Jenner) who have ruined their faces. I would definitely do my neck and under-eye bags. I’m almost 44. Maybe when I’m in my 60s? You can’t do anything about your hands, but at least you can fix your chicken neck. I don’t think she looks that bad. Her wife, on the other hand, looks overdone.

      • Vesper says:

        There are procedures to make ur hands more youthful – dermabrasion to smooth skin, fillers to take away from the bony look, lasers or creams for sun spots, and injections to reduce prominent veins.

  3. mk yarwood says:

    My mum is two years older than her and they look kind of identical in the wrinkle department. She’s had no work, but has gained a few lately, so her neck doesn’t wrinkle like that anymore! This is good news, as I see it. Means that in 20 years I can start eating more cake to look younger.

  4. Lucy2 says:

    Looks like she’s had a little bit done, but subtle is OK. I just don’t like when people get obsessed with it and end up looking like a plastic alien.
    I hope Portia doesn’t do too much.

  5. Bubbling says:

    She CANNOT pass as someone in late thirties…! If she invested all that money in tweaking and pulling she should’ve get more service…just saying..
    oh and this story sounds like a bag of BS

    • Ari says:

      I agree. I took personal offense that you would think she could pass for a woman in her 30’s LOL I mean SERIOUSLY hahahahaha

    • Quit the BS says:

      Thank you! she could NOT pass for a crackhead in her late 30’s! I always thought Ellen looked good until these photos, my mom is 53 and has had no work done and her neck and eyes look nothing like Ellens..wow! she looks rough.

  6. jinni says:

    I personally feel that if they still look like themselves just a little better after the work that it’s okay and they shouldn’t be shamed or called vain. Celebs live in a world and work in a business were their looks are important, even for the ones not known for their looks.

    This is why I never made fun of Demi for her work or Brad for those pics of him leaving the beauty salon. Their face is their money why not maintain it. That’s a part of their job.

  7. Itwillrain says:

    She’s had her neck done more than once, because I remember noticing her neck getting really saggy years ago and then noticing later that the sags were gone. At that point her face was still fine but the neck looked bad. I’m guessing this was 8 years ago but I don’t really remember the exact time frame.

  8. GoodCapon says:

    Ellen looks creepy as **** in that third picture.

    And nooo Portia what have you done to your face?! You’re beautiful enough as it is, girl!

    • Seagulls says:

      Portia is probably disappointed that her awesome TV series keep getting axed. Arrested Development and Better Off Ted, specifically.

      • GoodCapon says:

        That’s too bad. I’ve never watched Better Off Ted but I have fond memories of AD. And sorry to go off on a tangent here but I really, really liked the clothes that Portia wore on the show. She had an awesome stylist!

  9. DW says:

    I say “so what?”. The point isn’t whether or not she’s had procedures. What matters is that she doesn’t look fake or unrecognizable.

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      ^This is how I feel too. I’m not opposed to plastic surgery per see, just opposed to people making themselves look like wax statues.

  10. mommak918 says:

    ellen went to high school with my mom and dad. she is a year younger and looks like my mom in regards to the wrinkle area. tho my mom has had some minimal botox in her forehead and to cover a scar from a car crash. i dont mind if ellen does minor tweaking. she is in the show business. i also wonder if her vegan diet helps with the aging??

    i love Ellen. shes by far my favorite celeb!

  11. Cathy says:

    Just another bs story coming out of the Enquirer. If she has had some work done, it’s subtle and she looks good. Her wife on the other hand looks like a botox queen. Time to calm down on that stuff Portia

  12. Lemonade says:

    I think Ellen is a vegan and most vegans that I know in my life are kind of on that very very low fat diet that makes one a little stringy looking. A little weight looks good on a person when they are older. That and since she is 54 and has had Cancer, I’m willing to say she’s been through a lot and she looks great. Just don’t overtox it.

    I read Portia De Rossi’s book and she is a very insecure person, a lot of internal self hatred so I won’t knock on her looks because I’ve been there and its a hard life.

    • Kat says:

      Ellen has never had cancer, at least to my knowledge and google’s.

    • Lisa says:

      Not everyone looks good with an extra few lbs as they age, but amen to no low-fat diets! Fat won’t make you fat! Not on its own at least.

  13. shixa says:

    She got gypped…she looks way older than her 54 years. I would have never guessed she’s had ANYTHING done.

    The first 2 pix have flattering lighting but the next 2…yowza.

  14. TheOriginalTiffany says:

    She’s had quite a bit of work done. I can totally see the difference. She looks younger here than when my husband was a guest on her show and I was there all day.

    I have to say she is one of the nicest, most genuine people I have ever met in the business. Her face looks completely different than it did then, but it looks decent. She still looks like her, but lots got do e unless you actually can age in reverse and look younger ten years later.

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      Aw, that makes me so happy to read, Tiff. I always thought Ellen seemed like such a good egg…

      • The Original Tiffany says:

        Kitten, I swear to you it was like meeting and spending the day with Dory…or Ellen.

        She is just like she seems, which is pretty awesome. She gives out boxer shorts with her logo as greenroom gifts:)

        Random celeb who is also just the way they seem to be? John Malkovic. Just as strange and delightfully weird as he seems. I did a procedure on him-all I am allowed to say. He read scripts most of the day in a private room. It’s a very long test-they have to be there for hours.

      • Veruca says:

        A day with Dory? That’s a dream come true!

      • skuddles says:

        I love hearing this too – I’ve liked Ellen since way back when she was making her mark in stand up. She struck me as very warm and genuine. I totally adored her as Dory by the way!

    • Lisa says:

      That’s why I love Ellen! She’s a sweetie and I’ve never heard anyone in the biz knock her. 🙂

  15. fabgrrl says:

    Ellen rocks! I love her so. I’m not surprised, and really couldn’t care less if she has had some work done. As someone else said, she is a celebrity, not a normal person. She is photographed and filmed constantly – harsh lighting, heavy makeup, having to smile and pose for the camera when she feels tired or pissed off. Her appearance is part of her job.

    Also, I didn’t even recognize Portia. She *does* need to dial it back a notch.

  16. francesca1 says:

    She has definitely undergone a subtle transformation. The work is well done, but unnecessary.

  17. Itwillrain says:

    I went and looked at some YouTube videos, and found a compilation of videos from 1999-2000 where she definitely had started getting the turkey neck, and then I found a 2002 video where it was gone. So, she’s obviously been tweaking for a long time.

  18. Darlene says:

    I saw Portia on Ellen’s show a few days ago and GOODNESS but I almost didn’t recognize her face, she was so waxy and strange looking. 🙁

  19. Bluedog says:

    Of course she’s had work done. All TV personalities do, even ones you’d think would be above it like Ellen and Regis.

    She looks good, but she does look 54, which is FINE, much better than when celebrities try to look 25.

  20. yoyo says:

    She’s definitely had stuff done, her neck is soooo wrinkled compared to the rest of her face. And in some pictures her wrinkles around her eyes are so bad! you don’t see it on tv with all the make up and lights but yeah…I think she’s one of those typical sad clowns. On her tv show you see her all happy dippy not a care in the world but in those interviews she did with Oprah you saw that she isn’t a happy person at all, quite neurotic and totally vain. Apprently though its a requirement to be a good comedian. NONE of them are well balanced individuals. That’s where the comedy comes from…

  21. abby says:

    too much sun,not enough protection when it counted in her younger years, genetics…all of those things. I think she looks every bit her age and then some. women should be very mindful of their skin in their 20’s and 30’s because there’s little that can be done other than cosmetic surgery for neglected skin once we age into 40’s and beyond. put that fresh aloe on your face and neck ladies! it works.

  22. Jayna says:

    She looks great. Love her.

  23. Mitch Buchanan Rocks! says:

    I can’t get past the pic of Donald Trump – and Melania has to sleep with him.

  24. TheOneAndOnlyOnly says:

    Not surprised; never really cared for her, she’s not that funny and she comes across as one of the phonier celebs – and her suck up smarmy interviews with talentless twits like the biebster and Swifty kill whatever hipness and coolness she desperately tries to project.

  25. Melissa says:

    Okay, wait. You can get your neck done? How did I not know this? What is it called, and what do they do?

  26. littlestar says:

    I actually believe the Enquirer for once. I do think Ellen had some work done. My best-friend is a hair stylist, and he told me several years ago that Ellen was super crazy/obsessed about her hair. As in, it had to be done exactly how she wanted it – she likes it short and choppy and kind of flat looking, and wouldn’t allow for any changes. He heard this through other people he knows in the hair industry. I think Ellen is a good egg, but her life is lived in the spotlight, so I wouldn’t be the least surprised at her having some work done.

  27. Madriani's Girl says:

    In those “before” pictures she looks like she’s in her late 60s and those are a few years old when she would have been YOUNGER than she is now. Well, duh. Anyway, she is a textbook example of the following:

    1. Tanning is very bad for your skin
    2. Smoking is very bad for your skin
    3. Going to a too-light blond ages the snot out of you
    4. Turkey necks aren’t just for Thanksgiving dinner anymore, people!

  28. Walkingdeadlover says:

    Portia looks like a younger version of Helen Mirren in that picture!

  29. emu says:

    go Ellen! I don’t fault her for it, so what if she wants plastic surgery? I agree Portia could lay off and so it a lil more subtler like Ellen.

  30. muppet_barbershop says:

    I don’t find it excessive, given the extremely large audience (and therefore mainstream nature) of her talk show. She still looks like “herself” to me.

    Comedians who become successful for the long term are, even for famous people, under a relatively unique pressure to look young and affable in a certain way, I think. Like when Drew Carey lost all that weight; or jeez, if you think about it, Eddie Murphy HAS to have had work done; he’s around Ellen’s age.

    Portia still looks beautiful to me, but I agree that her “work done” has reached an unnecessary level.

  31. muppet_barbershop says:

    I don’t find it excessive, given the extremely large audience (and therefore mainstream nature) of her talk show. She still looks like “herself” to me.

    Comedians who become successful for the long term are, even for famous people, under a relatively unique pressure to look young and affable in a certain way, I think. Like when Drew Carey lost all that weight; or jeez, if you think about it, Eddie Murphy HAS to have had work done; he’s around Ellen’s age.

    Portia still looks beautiful to me, but I agree that her “work done” has reached an unnecessary level.