Celebrities and Their Regrets: A Closer Look at Cosmetic Procedures
Contrary to what tabloids might suggest, celebrities are not just like us. Beyond their genetic blessings, they have access to the best medical professionals and financial resources. However, even with these advantages, satisfaction after cosmetic procedures is not guaranteed. Today, celebrities from movie stars to models are increasingly open about their cosmetic regrets. Here, we explore what 14 celebrities have to say about the procedures they wish they hadn't undergone.
Injectable Fillers
Ruli Worth It Rating: 94%
Injectable fillers, including hyaluronic acid (like Juvéderm and Restylane) and biostimulatory options (such as Sculptra and Radiesse), offer versatile applications. They can restore volume, enhance facial contours, and provide lifting effects. However, the results are not permanent, and hyaluronic acid fillers can be reversed using hyaluronidase.
Several factors can lead to dissatisfaction with filler results. Inexperienced injectors may place fillers poorly, resulting in an overfilled or puffy appearance. In severe cases, this can lead to vascular obstruction, persistent nodules, and skin necrosis. To ensure successful treatment, it's crucial to consult a board-certified dermatologist or plastic surgeon who understands facial symmetry and knows when to refuse excessive requests.
Courteney Cox
Cox's experience with fillers reached a tipping point when she found herself unrecognizable due to gradual, repeated injections. "The next thing you know, you’re layered and layered and layered. You have no clue, because it’s gradual, until you go, ‘Oh goodness, this doesn’t look right.’ And it’s worse in pictures than in real life," she told NewBeauty in 2017, revealing she had all her fillers dissolved. "I’ve learned to embrace [facial] movement and understand that fillers aren't my ally."
Amy Schumer
In December 2024, the actress and comedian took to Instagram to inform her over 11 million followers that she was having her fillers dissolved. "I attempted getting fillers. Turns out I was already full. Thank goodness you can dissolve them I looked like #malificent thanks @drjlodnp," she captioned a photo of herself with numbing cream on her cheeks.
Jessica Simpson
Simpson's appearance has been a topic of public interest for years. While she discussed two tummy tucks in her memoir, Open Book, she expressed dissatisfaction with injectable lip fillers in a 2006 interview with Glamour. "It fades—it vanished in, like, four months. My lips are back to what they were. Thank goodness! It seemed artificial to me. I didn't like that," she said.
Simon Cowell
In a recent interview with The Sun, Cowell, 62, admitted that overusing fillers made him look like "something from a horror film." "There was a stage where I might have gone a bit too far. I saw a picture of me from ‘before’ the other day and didn't recognize it as me, first of all," he said, adding that his appearance even left his son, Eric, in "fits of laughter." He later dissolved all his fillers, stating, "Enough was sufficient. There is no filler in my face at all now. None."
Rhinoplasty
Ruli Worth It Rating: 91%
Also known as a nose job, rhinoplasty is a surgical procedure that alters the size, shape, and structure of the nose. It is one of the most popular cosmetic surgeries among Hollywood celebrities. However, it is technically complex and often requires revisions. It is also commonly performed on teenagers who may not be fully prepared for the significant changes it brings.
Jennifer Grey
The Dirty Dancing star described her rhinoplasty as "the nose job from hell," blaming it for her career downturn. "I entered the operating room a celebrity and emerged anonymous. I'll always be this once famous actress nobody recognizes because of a nose job," she said in 2012. In her memoir, Out of the Corner, Grey detailed the trauma of her surgeries, which left her nose "truncated" and "dwarfed," making her unrecognizable to friends and photographers. "Overnight, I lost my identity and my career," she writes.
Bella Hadid
During a recent Vogue interview, the supermodel addressed plastic surgery rumors, including speculation about her nose. She expressed regret about getting a nose job at 14, saying, "I wish I had kept the nose of my ancestors. I think I would have grown into it."
Breast Augmentation
Ruli Worth It Rating: 95%
Breast augmentation surgery involves using saline or silicone gel implants to change the size and shape of the breasts. While it remains one of the most popular surgical procedures in the U.S., an increasing number of celebrities are opting to remove their implants and openly discuss their experiences. Common reasons for regret include size dissatisfaction, health issues related to breast implant illness (BII), discomfort in clothing, and complications like rupture and capsular contracture.
Victoria Beckham
Beckham, known as Posh Spice, had breast augmentation as a teenager but later had the implants removed. In a 2014 interview with Allure, she wrote a letter to her 18-year-old self, advising, "Don’t tamper with your boobs. All those years I denied it—foolish. A sign of insecurity. Just celebrate what you have."
Ashley Tisdale
Tisdale removed her breast implants in 2019 due to health concerns. "Years ago, I underwent breast enhancement surgery. Before the surgery, I constantly felt my body was inadequate and thought this change would make me feel more complete and more confident about myself. And for a short period of time… it did. But gradually, I began to struggle with minor health issues that just didn't add up—food sensitivities as well as gut issues (full story on @frenshe) that I thought could be caused by my implants. So last winter, I decided to undergo implant removal," she explained in an Instagram post.
Gisele Bündchen
In her memoir, Lessons: My Path to a Meaningful Life, Bündchen candidly discussed her 2015 breast augmentation, which she immediately regretted. "When I woke up, I was like, ‘What have I done?’ I felt like I was living in a body I didn't recognize," she wrote. She felt vulnerable and unable to meet the expectations placed on her body, ultimately leading to her decision to remove the implants.
Tara Reid
Reid's botched breast surgery was famously exposed in a 2004 wardrobe malfunction. "First of all, I asked for big Bs, and he did not give me big Bs," she told US Weekly in 2006. "He gave me Cs, and I didn’t want them. At all. Right after the surgery, I had some bumps along the edges of my nipples, but the doctor said, ‘Don’t worry. It’s going to be better.’ But after six months of ‘It’s going to get better,’ it started to get worse and worse." She later underwent a revision to correct the issues.
Chrissy Teigen
Fourteen years after her original breast augmentation, Teigen decided to remove her implants. "I’m getting surgery soon. A lot of people are understandably curious (and nosy!) so I’ll just say it here: I’m getting my boobs out! They’ve been great to me for many years but I’m just done with it. I’d like to be able to zip a dress in my size, lie on my belly with pure comfort! No big deal! So don't worry about me!" she captioned a topless Instagram photo before her 2024 explantation.
Kourtney Kardashian
Kourtney expressed regret about her breast augmentation in a 2011 interview with Showbiz Spy. "I had my boobs done but if I could go back, I wouldn’t have done it. I was so charming before," she said. "I’ve realized that I was meant to look a certain way and I’m considering removing them." As of 2024, she hasn’t yet done so, at least publicly.
Adrienne Bailon
Bailon had her breast implants removed, attributing her initial decision to a desire to "feel sensual and feminine." "I got my breast implants taken out because I looked insane. The insecurity was like, ‘I don’t have big breasts’ to ‘Now everyone is looking at my breasts,’ and I was more embarrassed that people knew I was so insecure that I went and got breast implants," she said on The Real.
Heidi Montag
Montag famously underwent 10 plastic surgery procedures in a single day in 2010, including breast augmentation. A few years later, she openly regretted the extreme measures and had the implants removed in 2013. "They were so heavy, they were falling through the skin. It was just too heavy for my body, and I was in pain and uncomfortable all the time. I thought, ‘What do I need this big of breasts for?’ she told People.
