Though Hollywood's idea of beauty has changed over the years from thin to curvy to somewhere in between and back again, one point has always been clear: Flawless is it. Billions of dollars have been spent on aesthetics not only by the actresses and actors we know so well, but by the general public who are trying to either get or maintain what has been shown to us as 'acceptable beauty.' Now, it would appear that Hollywood may be backing off that message and encouraging actresses to stay away from the knife.
The 'done' look may be on it's way out
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As recently reported in the New York Times as well as on NBC's The Today Show, casting directors and TV executives are looking outside of the US for actresses who don't look like they were made from the same mold. They're saying that Botox is the enemy because it is critical for an actor's face to accurately portray emotion. When surgery hinders your ability to act, it isn't doing you any favors. Period pieces and historical roles often demand that only women without breast implants audition for the job, because it is obviously not in keeping with the imagery of the time.
Marina Del Rey plastic surgeon Dr. Grant Stevens says, "The overdone breasts, the overdone lips are a thing of the past. There's a definite emphasis on looking better, but looking very natural and believable." And there's the rub. It isn't that Hollywood doesn't want the same level of beauty, they just want it to look like you're born with it. Thanks in large part to the advent of HD cameras and TVs, the public has a trained eye and can often spot who has had work done. Actresses like Heidi Montag who brag about their time under the knife are becoming de passe in Hollywood society because it becomes apparent that they're fake, and when it comes time to act, above all else, they must look real.
The key is just that though, they must look real, not necessarily be real. The casting directors and executives are quick to point out that they still want the cream of the crop so to speak when it comes to beauty. Hollywood hasn't changed their ideal, they're saying you should come by it naturally.
Dr. Thomas Barnes, a cosmetic surgeon in Newport Beach, CA often works with some of the top A-list actors who have already established themselves. These people seek not to break into the field, but to maintain their footing. The procedures for this group are less face changing and more about remaining youthful, especially when it's time for the red carpet and they don't have the help of airbrushing or movie-makeup. Dr. Barnes says, "Let's talk a little bit about skin care. Sometimes we can do a little derma-planing... and take some of the excess hair off the face, that makes the face look a lot better." Another little secret is a trip to the tanning salon, "You get a little bit of inflammation of the skin and a little swelling in the skin, that erases those little lines and wrinkles and makes you look younger.... I'm not saying it's healthy, but these are the little tricks of the trade in Hollywood." Have you ever noticed that when your pores are enlarged, makeup only seems to make them look bigger? "In Hollywood, they take a little superglue and they fill up some of those pores they just pop it out later." There are some other non-surgical touch ups to be done such as dermabrasion, eMatrix, and Affirm. "These also give a little inflammation to the skin which makes it look better and more youthful."
