1.
After competing on RuPaul’s Secret Celebrity Drag Race, AJ McLean got a FaceTite, a procedure that uses radiofrequency waves and liposuction to target sagging skin and wrinkles. During a 2022 interview with People, he said, “Look, I have no shame in saying this: I went and got lipo on my neck.” He mentioned that everyone in his family has “extra skin” around their necks. “And for years, I was growing a beard to hide it because I was very insecure.”
“I look 10 years younger,” the Backstreet Boys member continued. “I just feel like a new human. And I’m so thankful for the show for giving me that little ounce of confidence to do something for myself that makes me feel so good. Without the show, I never would have done it. I would have just kept growing out a long beard and would have always been insecure about it. But now I can say for the first time, I love my profile.”
2.
In 2022, Simon Cowell admitted he felt “like something out a horror film” after extensive face fillers. He told the Sun, “I saw a picture of me from ‘before’ the other day, and didn’t recognize it as me.” Apparently, his son was “in hysterics” after noticing the difference in Simon’s face.
“There was a phase where everyone was having their faces pumped full of this and the other,” he continued. “Enough was enough. There is no filler in my face at all now. Zero.”
3.
In 2000, Christian Bale told the Guardian that he had cosmetic work done on his teeth for his role in American Psycho. “I liked my old teeth. I have a molding of them on a shelf. But with Patrick Bateman, his physicality is much more important than with most characters.” Christian explained that his character was very superficial and narcissistic.
“I looked at myself in the mirror, and it just wasn’t right,” he continued. “I was warned that if I got caps I could get a lisp, and you might still be able to tell in close-up. So I thought, I like my teeth, but I’m not so attached to them that I’m going to ruin this whole movie because I refuse to get them done.”
4.
On the Life is Short with Justin Long podcast, Joel McHale revealed he had three hair transplants. “I’d be totally bald. We’re not all born with gorgeous thick hair like you,” he told Justin. Joel recalled beginning to lose his hair at 18 or 19. “Three surgeries later, look at my hair! The technology is bananas now. They pluck your hair and stick it there.”
5.
In his memoir, John Stamos said his nose was the only thing he could focus on when he first saw himself on TV. “My nose is beginning to detract from my performance,” he recalled thinking. “Everyone who gets a nose job tries to find some excuse other than vanity, but let’s call it what it was — vanity.”
After his nose job, he was unhappy with the result. “My nose [looked] kind of pushed up like Peter Pan or something,” he wrote. So he had a second operation, this one by Michael Jackson’s plastic surgeon. “Who better to handle the delicate task of resculpting my nose than the man who created a whole new face for M.J.?”
6.
In 2022, Joe Jonas spoke to People about his partnership with Xeomin — a cosmetic injectable that smooths fine lines. He said treating his frown lines and a scar between his eyebrows boosted his confidence. “I liked that it relieved the area a little bit and I was like, ‘Okay, this is great,’ without it being too much for my liking. I appreciated that it wasn’t over the top. It’s very light.”
He continued, “There were all these talks at one point, like, ‘Oh, men can’t do this or it’s weird for guys to do that,’ and I think there’s a stigma that’s fading, and I like that. Guys are more openly wearing makeup, and it’s great to see. It’s like, do whatever you want, you know? It’s a beautiful generation that we’re living in.”
7.
For the 10-year challenge on social media, Bobby Berk posted pictures of himself in 2009 and 2019 on Twitter. A fan wrote, “Bobby has managed to have a stronger hairline in 2019 than 2009…come on Bobby; we all wanna know your secret…how have you improved it?”
Bobby replied, “1. Finasteride 2. Biotin 3. Rogain 4. PRP Treatments 5. Hair Transplant #truth 😘.”
8.
In 2020, Cheyenne Jackson shared an emotional Instagram post about his five hair transplants. He recalled starting to lose his hair at 22 and getting the first transplant at 28, noting the constant fear that someone would discover his secret. “Why did I care so much? What does that say about me? Being a vain actor in an industry that rewards beauty, I vowed to keep this my secret forever. I feel SO stupid saying that but it’s my truth. As if someone finding out would somehow negate my talent, or make me less viable or valuable in the world.”
He also recalled discreetly revealing his secret to hair and makeup crews. “At the beginning of every job, I’d secretly gather the hair & makeup people, dramatically close the door of the trailer, & make a big deal about REVEALING my devastating truth. Every. Single. Time. They basically said, ‘Ummm…yeah…so?’ NO ONE CARED BUT ME!”
9.
In 2018, Kanye West revealed that he had liposuction two years before. He told TMZ, “I had plastic surgery because I was trying to look good for y’all. I got liposuction because I didn’t want y’all to call me fat like y’all called Rob [Kardashian] at the wedding and made him fly home before me and Kim got married. I didn’t want y’all to call me fat so I got liposuction, right?”
10.
In a 2015 essay for HuffPost, Reid Ewing opened up about the intense body dysmorphia he suffered. At 19, he got cheek implants but was unhappy with the results. He turned to a different doctor for a chin implant, leading him into a cycle of getting a procedure, disliking it, and going to someone new for an additional procedure.
He wrote, “Of the four doctors who worked on me, not one had mental health screenings in place for their patients, except for asking if I had a history of depression, which I said I did, and that was that. My history with eating disorders and the cases of obsessive-compulsive disorder in my family never came up. None of the doctors suggested I consult a psychologist for what was clearly a psychological issue rather than a cosmetic one or warn me about the potential for addiction.”
11.
In 2012, Josh Hutcherson was photographed with a bandaged nose. On Twitter, he wrote, “Just had surgery to fix my broken nose.” However, in a statement provided to E! News, his rep said the procedure was intended to repair a deviated septum.
12.
On a 2006 episode of the Late Show with David Letterman, David showed before and after pictures of Howard Stern, asking if the radio show host had done any plastic surgery. Howard shared that he’d had his nose “shaved down a bit.” He said the plastic surgeon “snuck me in, in the morning so nobody would see my humiliation.” But he said it “made absolutely no difference in my face.”
13.
And finally, on an episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Clay Aiken said he had surgery on his jaw for TMJ. “I was like, ‘You know what, while I’m already down, go ahead and take the vacuum in there and suck the fat out of my chin.”
Any other male celebs who’ve shared the cosmetic surgery they’ve done? LMK in the comments below!