Rising new-faces trend among young women worries many

Helen Coffey, The Independent

No — I don’t believe you! I won’t believe you!” I was standing outside the club when I had this minor breakdown at the news that Emma Stone allegedly had “a whole new face”, as my friend put it. As is often the case with grief, my first response was denial. “It’s not true... It can’t be true...” I chuntered to myself as my friend proceeded to shove her phone under my nose, smugly flicking through pictures purporting to be “before” and “after” whatever cosmetic wizardry Stone had undergone. Much as my brain desperately wanted to reject the idea that Stone was turning into a clone, my eyes were struggling to follow suit. The Oscar-winning actor did seem to look different. Her jaw appeared tighter, cleaner. Her cheekbones higher, more prominent. Her eyes less hooded, the under-eye bags now non-existent. Even her nose looked altered — more pert and narrow than in days gone by.

It was unnerving. Stone was still recognisably herself, but every feature seemed subtly enhanced to create a shiny, elevated version — like she’d put herself through a Facetune filter, but in real life. And I hated it. It should be noted that the La La Land star has yet to address the rumours and admit to any procedures outright. That hasn’t stopped the internet from speculating she’s had everything from a mid-face lift and endoscopic brow lift to eyelid surgery known as an upper blepharoplasty, which has become the procedure du jour. But regardless of the “what” and “how” of it all, I still feel disproportionately disappointed that she’s just not looking quite like, well, her any more.

Yes, I’m aware that it’s a bit odd to take a stranger’s possible decision to indulge in surgery, tweakments or whatever else as a personal affront. But Stone has always been my celebrity friend-crush, you see — the woman I’m delusionally yet unshakably convinced I would be mates with if our paths ever crossed in real life. She’s always represented the ultimate cool girl: super talented, with two Academy Awards already under her belt; silly and funny, the kind of whip-smart woman with enough rizz to never take herself too seriously; attractive but in an offbeat, distinctive way. The kind of woman I’d assumed would be far too confident and self-assured to fall prey to the pressures of an industry that all too often prizes identikit hotness over individuality.

She’s not the only “cool girl” to potentially bend to the whims of a new aesthetic either. Jennifer Lawrence, another woman whose off-the-cuff humour and undeniable acting chops have made me look up to her forever, said in a recent New Yorker interview that she has a surgery booked in and gets regular Botox. When asked if she’d had the new style of miracle facelift that everyone seems to be getting, she responded: “No — but, believe me, I’m gonna!” Emily Blunt’s taut face has also fuelled a huge amount of speculation online; Lily Allen has openly enquired about getting a facelift, saying she only declined because she was too busy for the required post-op recovery time.

While I’ve long accepted that influencers would tinker with their faces, image being the cornerstone of engagement online, for some reason all this hits different. Cool girls, you see, are supposed to be too cool to care. But if these women, no matter how grounded and accomplished they might appear, aren’t immune... well, what hope is there for the rest of us?

I’ll admit, the fact that 37-year-old Stone is a full year younger than me also stings. She remains, particularly by today’s standards — which see better nutrition and exercise translate into 40 really and truly being the new 30 — a young woman. Time was, the only ones you’d see paying exorbitant amounts to look different were older people with money. This, at least, made sense: those in later life wanting to erase the ravages of time to stay relevant.