In 2006, we set out to create a world where anyone can read honest reviews, see real before and after photos, and connect with qualified doctors. Now RealSelf is 15, and a lot has changed since we launched. This month, we’re looking back at industry trends that have shaped where we are—and where we’re going. Thank you for sharing your journey with us over the years. To celebrate our 15th anniversary, we’re giving away more than $25,000 in prizes. Click here to enter the sweepstakes.
The year is 2006. George W. Bush is president. There’s no such thing as an iPhone. The only people taking selfies are Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Point being, a lot has changed since the year RealSelf launched. But one thing that’s remained constant is our fascination with all things related to celebrities and plastic surgery. From A-listers getting candid about cosmetic procedures to the advent of TV shows that made us see plastic surgery in a new light, here are the 15 biggest pop culture plastic surgery moments of the past 15 years.
1. Ashlee Simpson Ross’ nose has everyone talking (2006)
Two years after her infamous lip-syncing fiasco on Saturday Night Live, the pop star’s drastically altered nose became a hot topic of conversation—though she never fully copped to a nose job. Instead, in 2009, she coyly told Us Weekly, “As long as people have two eyes, you probably know the answer.” However, her father, Joe Simpson, did ultimately spill the beans, saying the surgery was to cure a breathing problem.
2. Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise premieres, putting plastic surgery front and center (2006)
When The Real Housewives of Orange County premiered in 2006, viewers were instantly captivated by the cast members’ lavish lifestyles and ever-changing faces. The 15 years since have seen 9 subsequent franchises launch, in cities across the country—and countless cosmetic procedures among almost all of the cast members have been documented, during filming and on social media.
3. Heidi Montag undergoes 10 cosmetic procedures—in one day (2010)
The Hills star made major headlines when she underwent a whopping 10 cosmetic procedures—including liposuction, breast augmentation revision, fat injections in her face, and a mini brow lift, just to name a few—in a single day. At the time, she was thrilled with the results, telling People that she “didn’t know she could have this much confidence.” However, her perspective had shifted dramatically a few years later. “I was way too young to make such a life-changing decision and was under so much pressure because it was the beginning of comment sections and negativity and hate on the internet,” she told Cosmopolitan in July 2019. “I think I looked in the mirror a little too much. I wish I had waited and not made a decision so young, because I have long-term health complications.”
4. Angelina Jolie reveals her decision to undergo a mastectomy and reconstruction in a New York Times op-ed (2013)
The notoriously private A-lister wrote a candid and emotional op-ed detailing her decision to have a preventive double mastectomy and breast reconstruction after learning she carried the BRCA1 gene. (Her mother died from breast cancer at the age of 56.) In the piece, she detailed the monthslong surgical process and the eventual peace that came with her decision. “I wanted to write this to tell other women that the decision to have a mastectomy was not easy. But it is one I am very happy that I made. My chances of developing breast cancer have dropped from 87% to under 5%. I can tell my children that they don’t need to fear they will lose me to breast cancer. On a personal note, I do not feel any less a woman. I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity,” she wrote.
5. Botched premieres, highlighting plastic surgery’s place as a topic of cultural conversation (2014)
Offering an inside look at the industry, the premise of Botched (which premiered on E! in June 2014) was simple: Find plastic-surgery-obsessed people with, well, botched, results and have board-certified plastic surgeons Dr. Terry Dubrow and Dr. Paul Nassif fix the situation. “In a culture fixated on looks, I think we are equally fascinated by stories of both good and terrible plastic surgery,” Jeff Olde, former executive VP of programming and development at E!, told The Hollywood Reporter. “As more and more people endure multiple procedures for that perfect look, all too often the outcome can be a nightmare. But with the help of two of the best doctors in the field, Botched will offer them a second chance at beauty.” The show is now in its seventh season, with countless celebrities appearing as patients, including Former supermodel Janice Dickinson, Tiffany “New York” Pollard, Teen Mom’s Farrah Abraham, and actress Nicole Eggert.
6. Joan Rivers, a renowned plastic surgery advocate, dies at the age of 81 (2014)
There’s arguably no celebrity whose name is as inextricably intertwined with plastic surgery as Joan Rivers. The comedian repeatedly sang the praises of cosmetic treatments, all with her signature sense of humor. “I wish I had a twin so I could know what I’d look like without plastic surgery,” she once said. The following year, her daughter, Melissa Rivers, revealed in her memoir that her mother had undergone a total of 348 plastic surgeries in her lifetime.
7. Caitlyn Jenner appears on the cover of Vanity Fair as a transgender woman (2015)
Jenner came out as a transgender woman in a big way, in 2015. Her transition was documented and revealed in a series of media moments, including a TV interview with Diane Sawyer, a reality show called I Am Cait, and a Vanity Fair cover story with a coverline that read, “Call Me Caitlyn.” The piece details the struggles she faced in her previous life as well as the extensive surgeries and procedures she underwent in order to complete her transition.
8. Kylie Jenner (finally) admits to having lip filler (2015)
The ultra-plumped lips of the youngest member of the Kardashian-Jenner clan were a hot topic of conversation for months, though she staunchly maintained that her pout was purely a result of extra lip liner…until 2015. “I have temporary lip fillers—it’s just an insecurity of mine, and it’s what I wanted to do,” the then 17-year-old said on an episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Capitalizing on the now clear connection between Kylie and fuller lips, she launched Kylie Cosmetics and her first set of Kylie Lip Kits, three liquid lipsticks with corresponding lip liners, only a few months later; they sold out in less than a minute. Today, Kylie Cosmetics is valued at approximately 1.2 billion dollars, and Jenner’s lips continue to go viral—and change. In a 2018 Instagram post, she announced that she had dissolved all of her lip fillers…then posted that she’d once again had them injected, just a few months later.
9. Everyone wants Meghan Markle’s nose (2017)
In 2011, Meghan Markle was a fairly under-the-radar actress on USA’s Suits; in 2017, she was engaged to Prince Harry and one of the most photographed women in the world. Her rise to fame also came with a somewhat unexpected side effect. “Patients started coming to me about six months ago, requesting Meghan Markle’s nose,” Dr. Stephen T. Greenberg, a Southampton, New York, board-certified plastic surgeon, told Allure in 2017, not long after Meghan and Harry announced their engagement. “She has a pretty great nose, but I think the beauty of it is that it isn’t perfect. From the profile, you can see that she has a very slight dorsal hump of the nose that is almost undetectable when looking at her straight on.”
10. Cardi B gets candid about her illegal butt injections (2018)
The rapper is shockingly outspoken and candid about any and every subject, cosmetic treatments included. In a 2018 interview with GQ, she revealed that she’d gotten $800 worth of butt injections in a basement apartment in Queens a few years prior. (She said the decision was fueled partially by the fact that she saw that her stripper colleagues who had larger butts were making more money.) “They don’t numb your ass with anything,” she said of the experience. “It was the craziest pain ever. I felt like I was gonna pass out. I felt a little dizzy. And it leaks for, like, five days.” And while she said she was ultimately happy with the result, she never got to go back for a touch-up: “By the time I was gonna go get it, the lady got locked up ’cause she’s supposedly killed somebody. Well, somebody died on her table,” she told the magazine.
11. Dolly Parton defends her multiple cosmetic procedures (2019)
The iconic country singer may be best known for her voluptuous breasts, but she has also been open about undergoing a brow lift and eyelid surgery, having a nose job, and more. In a 2011 interview, she told The Guardian, “If something is bagging, sagging, or dragging, I’ll tuck it, suck it, or pluck it.” Eight years later, she defended her appearance in an interview on CBS Sunday Morning: “It is true that I look artificial, but I believe that I’m totally real. My look is really based on a country girl’s idea of glam. I wasn’t naturally pretty, so I make the most of anything I’ve got.”
12. Chrissy Teigen removes her breast implants and shares her scars on social media (2020)
The supermodel turned cookbook author is well-known for her candid social media presence. Case in point: She took to Instagram in the spring and summer of 2020 to document her breast implant removal process. In a May 2020 post, she said: “I’m getting surgery soon. A lot of people are understandably curious (and nosey[sic]!) 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 over it. I’d like to be able to zip a dress in my size, lay on my belly with pure comfort!” (She previously shared that she underwent a breast augmentation at the age of 20 as a way to help further her modeling career.) In July, she shared a photo of her breast implant scars on Instagram, citing that there were people who didn’t believe she had actually undergone implant removal.
13. Jane Fonda says she’s done with plastic surgery (2020)
Jane Fonda is no stranger to the topic of plastic surgery. Even though she’s talked about cosmetic procedures in the past, she made headlines in 2017 during an interview with Megyn Kelly, when she quickly shut down the TV host’s questions about plastic surgery. (“You really want to talk about this now?” she famously responded.) She did talk about the topic in a 2020 Elle Canada cover story, telling the magazine: “I can’t pretend that I’m not vain, but there isn’t going to be any more plastic surgery—I’m not going to cut myself up anymore. I have to work every day to be self-accepting—it doesn’t come easy to me,” adding that she now uses social media as a way to be honest about her continuing struggle with self-image.
14. Dr. 90210 returns with an all-female cast of plastic surgeons (2020)
E!’s Dr. 90210 initially ran from 2004 to 2008, first focusing on the life and practice of Dr. Robert Rey and later expanding to include other doctors such as Dr. Gary Alter and Dr. William Kirby. Twelve years after it went off the air, the network announced a reboot, this time featuring an all-female cast of surgeons: Dr. Kelly Killeen, Dr. Michelle Lee, Dr. Catherine Huang-Begovic, and Dr. Suzanne Quardt, highlighting the fact that even though Beverly Hills is a mecca for plastic surgery, only 15% of plastic surgeons in the area are women.
15. Marc Jacobs takes to Instagram to reveal his facelift (2021)
In July 2021, the fashion designer shared a post-facelift selfie, complete with bandages and drainage tubes, with the hashtag #LiveLoveLift. He continued to document the recovery process with his 1.6 million followers, snapping daily selfies over the course of the following days. New York City board-certified facial plastic surgeon Dr. Andrew Jacono, who performed Jacobs’ deep plane facelift, praised his decision to be so candid in an interview with Vogue, lauding him for helping to shift societal expectations and stigmas. “A big frustration is that people in the public eye who have means seem to be genetic mutants and make the rest of us feel like we’re not up to par. But the truth is, there’s a certain point in life where you can’t fix things without surgery. The people who look good never talk about it, so it only adds to the confusion. When someone of Marc’s status is sharing, it helps people realize that there are things we all can do to maintain ourselves and enhance our appearance. It sends people a message: Yes, it’s possible to look like yourself, it’s not as bad as you think, and you can get the results you want without looking like you had bad plastic surgery,” he said.
