The Before And After Look
Familiar faces never really stay the same, and the change is more visible under the spotlight. Watching some actors’ journeys makes you reflect on how time reshapes everyone, even legends.
Renee Zellweger
At the 2014 Elle Awards, Renee Zellweger stunned the world with sharper features and a leaner jawline after a six-year hiatus. Rumors swirled, but she dismissed them as “mean-spirited fiction.” By 2025, her Vogue covers showcased slicked-back hair and angular makeup that ignited fresh talk about her changing appearance.
Renee Zellweger (Cont.)
Audiences first loved her rounded, youthful charm in Jerry Maguire and Bridget Jones’s Diary. Years later, she won her second Oscar for Judy by slipping into Garland’s skin with wigs and vintage makeup. Today, her minimalist cropped hair and clean suits make her a Carolina Herrera favorite.
Meg Ryan
In the early 2000s, Meg Ryan’s visibly altered facial features drew widespread speculation, which made headlines everywhere. After starring in In the Cut (2003), she stepped away, citing that she was uncomfortable with fame. Years later, in 2015, she directed Ithaca, and during promotions, you could notice her sharper cheeks and jawline.
Sony Pictures, In the Cut (2003) and Momentum Pictures, Ithaca (2015)
Val Kilmer
Val Kilmer’s appearance changed dramatically after being diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. Treatments, including a tracheotomy in 2015, caused weight loss along with loss of natural speech, but with AI tech, he was able to speak again in Top Gun: Maverick. His 2021 documentary Val showed decades of unfiltered footage.
Georges Biard, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons and Paramount Pictures, Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
Bridget Fonda
Audiences once saw Bridget Fonda everywhere in the 1990s, but after a serious 2003 car accident that caused vertebral fractures, she chose to step away. That same year, she married composer Danny Elfman and embraced private family life. When she finally reemerged in 2022, she looked strikingly different.
Shelley Duvall
Shelley Duvall gained widespread recognition for her role in The Shining (1980). Over the decades, she exhibited visible signs of aging and physical decline, which drew considerable public attention during a 2016 television interview, where concerns regarding her health and well-being were widely discussed.
Warner Bros., The Shining (1980) and Frightfully Forgotten, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson’s fame exploded in 1989. Baywatch made her iconic—sun-streaked blonde hair, a red swimsuit, and endless magazine covers. By the late 90s, thin brows and dark eyeliner cemented her Y2K look. Paparazzi trailed her glam every step, from Tommy Lee’s arm to global fashion campaigns.
Pamela Anderson (Cont.)
Decades later, Anderson stunned Paris Fashion Week (2023) with a bare face, no makeup in sight. On Broadway’s Chicago and on daytime TV, she embraced natural beauty and drew applause for defying expectations. Her Golden Globe nod for The Last Showgirl was well deserved and surprised critics, too.
Kate Winslet
Audiences saw something rare in Mare of Easttown (2021): Kate Winslet refused retouching and left every wrinkle visible. That choice sparked headlines, and fans applauded her honesty. She turned her natural changes into a public stand against Hollywood’s obsession with airbrushing and impossible beauty expectations.
Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp’s soft-featured 21 Jump Street era evolved into a bohemian style of tattoos and layered clothes. Recent appearances, however, highlight weight loss and a cleaner aesthetic, especially in Dior campaigns. His look reflects constant reinvention under both personal and public pressures.
20th Television, 21 Jump Street (1987–1991) and Arnold Wells, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Mickey Rourke
Once hailed as Hollywood’s rugged outsider, Mickey Rourke left the spotlight for boxing. Fighting professionally as “El Marielito,” he notched 27 wins and three losses. Years of punches left scars, which forced cartilage grafts from his rib. By 2008, he returned triumphant in The Wrestler.
Mickey Rourke 1986 by HarryAngel and Fox Searchlight Pictures, The Wrestler (2008)
Mickey Rourke (Cont.)
Rourke’s constantly shifting appearance became tabloid fodder—plumper lips and lifted brows. Plastic surgeons have speculated on facelifts and implants, while his oversized shades mask lingering scars. The fighter’s cowboy boots, silk shirts, and slick hairstyles recast the bruised fighter into a stylish, resilient figure determined to control his own image.
Anton Belickiy, Wikimedia Commons
Taylor Momsen
Once the angelic Cindy Lou Who in The Grinch, Taylor Momsen later stormed into the rock world. With platinum hair and grunge fashion, she fronts the rock band The Pretty Reckless. Her edgy presence is a deliberate break from child-star innocence, fully embracing rebellious artistry.
Erin Moriarty
Season 1 of The Boys introduced Erin Moriarty with a soft, youthful style. By Season 3, her sharper cheekbones and narrower nose stirred unconfirmed cosmetic rumors, which she denied, crediting makeup and natural evolution. Today, her sculpted face fits Hollywood beauty ideals by sparking questions about industry expectations.
Amazon Studios, The Boys Season 1 (2019)
Matthew Lewis
Fans still recall Neville Longbottom’s awkward wardrobe and prosthetics in Harry Potter. Post-franchise, Matthew slimmed down, corrected his smile, and posed shirtless for Attitude. The transformation was so dramatic that fans coined “Longbottoming” to describe glow-ups that shock everyone.
Edward Furlong
Audiences first met Edward Furlong as John Connor in Terminator 2 (1991), a kid with striking intensity. Decades brought addiction and visible changes in weight and appearance. By the 2010s, fans barely recognized him. Yet his 2022 return in The Reunion marked resilience and a new chapter.
Dwayne Johnson
Before superstardom, “The Rock” had a stockier frame and a full head of hair. Gynecomastia surgery and porcelain veneers refined his look by 2001’s The Mummy Returns. His bald head soon became a trademark. For action films, he bulks to 270 pounds, then leans for dramatic roles under 250.
Dwayne Johnson (Cont.)
Johnson transformed into fighter Mark Kerr—donning wigs and bruised makeup—for The Smashing Machine (2025). Training in mixed martial arts drills, he even grew out his hair for the first time in decades. When the “unrecognizable” photos dropped, fans cheered his fearless dive into reinvention.
A24, The Smashing Machine (2025)
Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks stunned fans in Cast Away when he dropped 55 pounds for authenticity. Two decades later, his rugged beard in Finch grabbed headlines again. Following a Type 2 diabetes diagnosis in 2013, noticeable aging included slower movements and a relaxed public image.
20th Century Fox, Cast Away (2000) and Apple Original Films, Finch (2021)
Jennifer Grey
Few faces were as iconic as Jennifer Grey’s in Dirty Dancing (1987). Then came a rhinoplasty in the early 1990s, and suddenly, casting directors sometimes failed to recognize her. Though she admitted the surgery reshaped her career, Dancing with the Stars in 2010 gave her a welcome reintroduction to audiences.
Vestron Pictures, Dirty Dancing (1987) and ABC, Dancing with the Stars (2010)
Sean Connery
As James Bond in the 1960s, Sean Connery personified lean, polished charm. After retiring in 2003 with The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, he lived quietly in the Bahamas. His final photos showed the toll of age, yet his dignified withdrawal left a legacy of restraint until his 2020 death.
Yasmine Bleeth
The 1990s beach-glam persona of Baywatch star Yasmine Bleeth seemed unshakable. But by 2001, addiction struggles shifted everything, which led her away from Hollywood. Health and lifestyle changes altered her appearance, and with her last role in 2003, she chose privacy and a life completely out of public view.
FremantleMedia International, Baywatch (1990)
Jonah Hill
Jonah Hill’s body has been part of his story. He slimmed down over 40 pounds for Moneyball (2011), only to regain it for War Dogs (2016). Then came directing Mid90s, which signaled growth beyond the screen. His Brazilian jiu-jitsu posts and candid TV rebukes keep him both grounded and outspoken.
Sony Pictures Releasing, Moneyball (2011) and Warner Bros., War Dogs (2016)
Jonah Hill (Cont.)
From Superbad’s lovable everyman to the slick politician in Don’t Look Up, Hill’s look matured with close crops and sharp suits. Food journals and nutrition plans fueled his shifts, but his evolving eyewear hints at personality reinventions. Online, he shares honest reflections about therapy and body image.
Columbia Pictures, Superbad (2007) and Netflix, Don’t Look Up (2021)
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