The celebrities who have taken plastic surgery way too far (2023)

It's no secret that many of Hollywood's brightest stars have gone through great measures to maintain their youthful looks as they age - but lots of them have proved that going too far can lead to disastrous results.

Over the years, the world has watched on as some of the most famous faces in the industry changed drastically right in front of our eyes- thanks to botched cosmetic procedures or simply over-doing their plastic surgery.

On Sunday, Madonna became the latest star to come under furious scrutiny over her appearance after she stepped out at the Grammy Awards sporting what many fans described as an 'unrecognizable' look.

The 64-year-old later slammed the criticism of her appearance in a lengthy Instagram post, blaming comments about her looks on 'ageism and misogyny'.

She also insisted that any 'distortion' of her face on stage was due to the fact that she was being filmed with a 'long lens camera' that altered her appearance.

But while Madonna was quick to shut down any speculation about what work she may - or may not - have had done, she is far from the only star to have faced serious scrutiny over their so-called cosmetic attempts to maintain a more youthful appearance.

Over the years, dozens of stars have gone under the knife, or opted to use various injections and lasers in the hopes of freezing their faces in time - and several have ended up with rather disastrous results, either as a result of a botched procedure... or because they have simply gone too far with their surgical alterations.

Take supermodel Linda Evangelista, for example. She underwent a CoolSculpting procedure in 2016 in an attempt to decrease her fat cells - but it backfired, and she suffered from a rare reaction that left her face 'permanently deformed' and 'brutally disfigured.'

Reality star Lisa Rinna also fell victim to faulty surgery, with her lip injections seeping through 10 years after she got them - creating 'bumpy' scar tissue and resulting in a doctor needing to go back and fix it a decade later.

And while there are numerous celebrities who have struggled with messed-up procedures, others simply took it too far - getting so much work done to their faces that they were ultimately left looking unrecognizable.

FEMAIL went ahead and rounded up all the failed plastic surgery transformations that the stars have had over the years - from the celebrities who went overboard and changed so much about themselves that they ended up looking like actual plastic, to the ones who saw a procedure go terribly wrong.

Linda Evangelista

Linda Evangelista, 57, went through a drastic physical transformation in 2016, after she underwent something known as CoolSculpting, which was designed to decrease her fat cells.

However, she suffered from a rare reaction to the cosmetic procedure that left her 'permanently deformed' and 'brutally disfigured.'

During the procedure, which has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a device that's set below freezing temperature is applied to fat deposits, which causes cell death in the tissue.

But weeks after, Linda developed a condition called paradoxical adipose hyperplasia - a rare adverse effect of cryolipolysis, which has been reported in of 0.0051 per cent of the 1.5 million CoolSculpting procedures performed worldwide.

With this condition, the treated area becomes larger, rather than smaller. It can leave a 'painless, visibly enlarged, firm, well-demarcated mass' underneath the skin.

Linda said on Instagram that she developed 'bulges' all over her body after the surgery, which left her 'unrecognizable.'

Speaking to Peoplemagazine in 2021, the former runway star detailed how she thought she was going crazy and 'stopped eating' when the growths started to appear on her chin, thighs, and bust area - and said she now 'dreads running into someone she knows' after spending decades as a catwalk sensation.

The model told the outlet at the time that she can no longer bear to look at herself in the mirror - since 'it doesn't look like her' - explaining that her identity as 'Linda Evangelista, supermodel' is now 'gone' due to the condition.

She added: 'If I walk without a girdle in a dress, I will have chafing to the point of almost bleeding.

'Because it's not like soft fat rubbing, it's like hard fat rubbing. [I can't] put my arms flat along my side. I don't think designers are going to want to dress me with that sticking out of my body.'

Linda told British Vogue that she decided to have the CoolSculpting procedure done after seeing frequent advertisements for it on TV.

She dished:'Those CoolSculpting commercials were on all the time - on CNN, on MSNBC, over and over, and they would ask, "Do you like what you see in the mirror?"

'They were speaking to me. It was about stubborn fat in areas that wouldn't budge. It said no downtime, no surgery. I drank the magic potion, and I would because I'm a little vain. So I went for it - and it backfired.'

She has since undergone two liposuction surgeries in an attempt to fix the problem, and spent six years 'in hiding' - but she announced in February that she was done living in 'shame.'

She recently returned to modeling while posing on the cover of British Vogue's September 2022 issue, during which, makeup artist Pat McGrath had to use tape and elastics to pull her jaw and neck back, which she covered with scarves and hats.

At the time, she explained that she is still 'trying to love herself' after becoming 'so depressed' following the faulty procedure, and that using the tape 'took care of' her 'insecurities' so that she could feel confident while 'doing what she loves to do' again.

Lisa Rinna

Over the years, Lisa Rinna's the size of her lips have notably changed, and it turns out,she got permanent silicone filler injected into her lips when she was 24.

But 10 years later, the silicone started seeping throughout her lip and created scar tissue that was bumpy.

'I was crazy to even touch them in the first place,' the now-59-year-old previous admitted to People. 'In the beginning, it was great, but then it started to feelhard and bumpy, like peas.'

Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Garth Fisher then reconstructed her upper lip by removing some of the damaged tissue in 2010, and she has been happy ever since.

'I always say, jokingly, that my lips have a career of their own,' the reality star told DailyMail.com in a 2020 interview.

'The feedback on them was not always positive. There was a time when people were negative. But I think they became accepted.'

She added to People, 'It’s made me who I am.I am the perfect poster child for what not to do on a whim.

'With all that’s happened with the lip, I can show them that you need to love yourself for who you are and embrace how you look.'

She has also admitted to having a boob job.

Melanie Griffith

For years, rumors swirled that Melanie Griffith, 65, had gone under the knife after people noticed her appearance had suddenly changed in the 2010s.

And in April 2017, the actress admitted to experimenting with cosmetic procedures - and even said she may have taken it too far.

'I didn’t [realize it had gone too far] until people started saying, "Oh my god, what has she done?!"' she told Porter magazine.

'I was so hurt I went to a different doctor and he started dissolving all of this [stuff] that this other woman doctor had put in. Hopefully, I look more normal now.'

While Melanie didn't detail what she had done, she did explain to the outlet that she had her first surgery 20 years prior, and said she then 'started doing more injections' in 2010.

She theorized that she was 'allergic to it' and that's what caused her new look, however plastic surgery experts had other ideas.

Benjamin Strong from Kalos Facial Plastic Surgery in Atlanta, Georgia, wrote in a 2015 blog post that he believed 'many failed and botched procedures' was what left her looking like 'plastic.'

After analyzing photos of her over the years, he said he believed she had received 'Botox injections, cheek implants, an eyebrow lift, face lift, and lip augmentation.'

Carrot Top

Actor and comedianCarrot Top, 57, took on a whole new look in the 2000s, leading many to believe that he had plastic surgery.

However, the popular '90s star has continuously denied that he enhanced his looks, insisting to Florida Today in 2015 that he 'never had any work done.'

'I just worked out a lot, and I never had any plastic surgery. I can see why people would think that since I got really big for a while,' he said.

'I mean, if I was going to have plastic surgery, I would look better than this. My crew, my family and my friends all know I work so hard I wouldn't have had time to get work done if I wanted to.'

He called the rumors the 'most ridiculous thing' he's ever heard about himself.

Despite his denial, plastic surgeon Benjamin wrote in 2015 that he thought Carrot had an 'eyebrow lift, cheek and jaw grafting, Botox injections, lip injections, and laser peels.'

Tori Spelling

In 2019, actress Tori Spelling, now 49, admitted to previously getting her 'nose and boobs done' to People magazine.

But in 2021, speculation started to arise that he had received more cosmetic surgeries after people started to brand her as 'unrecognizable.

However, Tori insisted that she had nothing else done and that the change in her appearance was thanks to makeup.

'I have an amazing makeup artist now,' she said on Sirius XM. 'With contour, she does makeup like no one else.

'I look completely different. I look like I’ve had a nose job. Like, it’s straight now. But it'sall contouring.'

Even so, a plastic surgeon told Page Six at the time that he was definitely convinced she had gone back under the knife.

'She definitely did her nose again, 100 per cent,'plastic surgeon Ramtin Kassir told the outlet.

He also theorized she had a face lift due to her 'clean, tight, and rejuvenated' jaw line, as well as an eyebrow lift.

'When looking at her before picture, you don’t see her nice, defined lines that you see with her now,' he explained. 'I’m just going by what I’m seeing [in the photos].

'She’s probably working out and in great shape, too, so that all helps, but she’s definitely had some things done to her face.'

In February 2022, the mother-of-five announced that she had gotten her breast implants redone 20 years after the first procedure - thanks to advice from her daughter Stella.

'I got them when I was really young. And I didn't know that at a certain point they would have an expiration. I didn't know that you would have to do it again,' she told E! News.

After the FDA announced in 2011 that the longer a woman has silicon implants, the higher risk they are for complications, Tori knew she would need to redo the procedure, but 'put it off' for years - until then-13-year-old Stella forced her to finally go and do it.

'It really hit home for me when my daughter came to me and she's like, "Mom, I'm concerned,"' said Tori.

'"You have put this off. You told me for years now that you need to get your boobs redone."'

'For health reasons, it's way safer at this point to do it. Because there's scar tissue buildup, it puts you out there for having long term things go wrong in your body.'

Wayne Newton

Beloved singerWayne Newton, 80, left viewers stunned when he appeared on The Bachelorette in 2018 and looked completely different from the musician they all knew and loved.

Social media was quickly flooded with people's reactions to his different appearance, with one person comparing him to a 'wax figure,' and another simply asking, 'What the Hell did he do with his face?'

While Wayne has not addressed the rumors himself, plastic surgeon Mathhew Schulman told HouseAndWhips.comthat he believed the artist had undergone 'several procedures' including 'upper and lower eyelid surgeries and full lifts to the face and neck.'

He added that it looked like Wayne had gone 'overboard' with 'Botox' and likely also received 'multiple browlifts.'

Reid Ewing

Modern Family star Reid Ewing, 34, announced in a 2015 essay with Huffington Postthat he had undergone eight different plastic surgeries after suffering frombody dysmorphia.

'My looks were the only thing that mattered to me. I had just moved to LA to become an actor and had very few, if any, friends,' he wrote.

'I'd sit alone in my apartment and take pictures of myself from every angle, analyzing every feature.

'After a few years of doing this, one day I decided I had to get cosmetic surgery. "No one is allowed to be this ugly," I thought. "It's unacceptable."'

In 2008, when he was just 19, he had his first procedure by getting 'cheek implants' - but he hated the results.

'When the time came to take off the bandages, it was nothing like I had expected. My face was so impossibly swollen,' he said.

'After all the swelling finally went down, the results were horrendous. The lower half of my cheeks were as hollow as a corpse's, which, I know, is the opposite of what you'd expect, as they are called cheek implants.

'I stayed in complete isolation. When I went out, people on the street would stare at me, and when I visited my parents they thought I had contracted some illness.'

He then got a 'chin implant,' which he believed would 'repair his sunken-in face, but the doctor messed up and had to operate a second time weeks later.

Over the next few years, he continued to go under the knife, adding, 'Each procedure would cause a new problem that I would have to fix with another procedure.'

He eventually had his 'numerous implants removed' and started 'experimenting with less-noticeable changes to his face, like injectable fillers and fat transfers.'

He said in 2012, he vowed to 'never get cosmetic surgery again,' and despite still being 'deeply insecure' about the way he looked, he eventually became more 'comfortable.'

'People with body dysmorphic disorder often become addicted to cosmetic surgery,' he concluded.

'Gambling with your looks, paired with all the pain meds doctors load you up on, make it a highly addictive experience.

'It often helps people who actually need it for serious cases, but it's a horrible hobby, and it will eat away at you until you have lost all self-esteem and joy.

'I wish I could go back and undo all the surgeries. Now I can see that I was fine to begin with and didn't need the surgeries after all.'

Jocelyn Wildenstein

Socialite Jocelyn Wildenstein, 82, has become known for her extensive plastic surgeries - and has even become known as the human 'Catwoman' due to the feline-like way her face looks.

Her first procedure was an eye lift, which she got at the same time as her then-husband Alec Wildenstein, and it soon sparked her obsession.

'I don't think I've known her when she wasn't healing from something,' a friend told Vanity Fairin 1998.

However, despite the enormous amount of speculation and reporting on the many surgical procedures that the socialite has undergone over the years - she has always denied any suggestion that she's had surgery.

As recently as 2018, Wildenstein claimed to DailyMailTV that she had never undergone any form of cosmetic surgery.

Speaking exclusively, the Swiss-born Manhattan socialite, nicknamed 'Catwoman' explained that her distinct appearance dates back to her youth.

When asked if she had gone under the knife, the now 82-year-old, said: 'No, especially when we look back at my pictures - I think of course I am maybe more beautiful [back then].

'When we are young there's a certain freshness we lose with the years.

'But you still find the same eyes, same high cheeks, or same nose. I think I was more pretty.'

The star's fiance Lloyd Klein, 55, added: 'I don't understand the whole press and the Catwoman thing because [she has] always looked like that.

'She never really did anything to change her face. I have pictures from 16 years old where she looks exactly the same as today.'

When asked if she has undergone surgery Wildenstein said: 'No, especially when we look back at my pictures - I think of course I am maybe more beautiful [back then].

'When we are young there's a certain freshness we lose with the years. But you still find the same eyes, same high cheeks, or same nose. I think I was more pretty.'

Lloyd added: 'Look, Jocelyn is beautiful, she's magical. The first time I met her, I was almost mesmerized by the beauty, the eyes, the personality. And I work in fashion and I see all these supermodels, and I see everyone, and I see the most beautiful women on the runway, right? But Jocelyn, has something to offer that not a lot of women have.'

Mickey Rourke

Mickey Rourke, 70, has been open about his changing face throughout the years, claiming to have undergone plastic surgery predominantly for facial restructuring due to injuries from boxing.

'Most of it was to mend the mess of my face after the boxing. I went to the wrong guy to put my face back together,' he told DailyMail.com in 2009.

In his early life, he had beena successful amateur boxer, and in 1991,he left acting following a string of box office failures and re-entered the ring as a professional at the age of 39.

'I had my nose broken twice. I had five operations on my nose and one on a smashed cheekbone,' he explained.

'I had to have cartilage taken from my ear to rebuild my nose and a couple of operations to scrape out the cartilage because the scar tissue wasn't healing properly. That was one of the most painful operations, but the worst was hemorrhoids.'

In 2017, the 9 1/2 Weeks star had another nose job, but this time he seemed to be happy with the results.

Mickey shared a photo of himself shirtless and posing with his plastic surgeon in the hospital right after the procedure. He had a banana wrapped around his head and a bandage on his nose.

'Moments after ""nose surgery with Dr. Dhir. Now i am ""pretty again ":(lol)...one more to go ""I don't know what day it is don't even realize operation is over [sic],' he wrote on Instagram.

Priscilla Presley

Priscilla Presley, 77, suffered a botched plastic surgery and had her appearance changed forever at the hands of an unlicensed doctor in 2003.

Dr.Daniel Serrano, an Argentinian doctor who was not licensed to practice medicine in the US, reportedly injected anindustrial low-grade silicone - similar to what mechanics use grease car parts - into her face.

'Priscilla Presley was one of many documented victims of Dr. Daniel Serrano,' her rep confirmed in 2008. 'An investigation which uncovered his misconduct ultimately led to his imprisonment. Ms. Presley dealt with this matter years ago and everything is now well.'

Serrano, who also treated Lionel Richie's ex-wife Diane Ritchie and Larry King's wife Shawn King, was only licensed as a nurse when he performed the cosmetic procedure.

He was investigated after his patients complained the injections caused lumps, paralysis, and craters in the face. He was arrested in 2004 and charged in relation to the illegal injections.

Serrano was later sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy, smuggling, and use of unapproved drugs in 2006.

Over a decade later, Priscilla, the former wife of Elvis Presley, was spotted with a bandage on her nose at a Los Angeles protest against the dog meat trade in 2018.

Heidi Montag

Heidi Montag, 36, completely altered her appearance after having ten plastic surgeries in one day, a decision that almost cost the reality star her life.

In 2009, The Hills star had a chin reduction, a brow lift, a second nose job, her ears pinned back, and a second breast augmentation, among other surgeries, under the supervision of celebrity plastic surgeon Dr. Frank Ryan, who died a year later.

Heidi, who was 23 at the time, was motivated to change her appearance after facing criticism about her appearance from online trolls while filming the MTV reality series.

During an interview withPAPERmagazine in 2018, she recalled how she sufferedlife-threatening complications, saying she 'died for a minute' on the operating table.

'My security guards called Spencer and told him, "Heidi's heart stopped. She's not going to make it." Spencer thought he lost me,' she recalled.

'With that much surgery, I had to have 24-hour nurse care and Spencer didn't want to leave my side. I was at a recovery center and had Demerol to deal with the pain because it was so extreme.'

After her recovery, sherevealed her new look to her mom Darlene and older sister Holly at their home in Colorado on The Hills in 2010.

'I do want to look like Barbie,' she admitted at the time.

She then tearfully broke down as her mom told her that she hoped the results of the surgeries would 'fade away' because she was 'much more beautiful before.'

Heidi later shared that she regrets the dramatic procedures, saying she wishes she had waited until she was older before making such a life-changing decision.

'I was just really self-involved at the time - like so many young people - but I was also on TV where every perceived flaw is amplified. I think I looked in the mirror a little too much,' she told Cosmopolitan in 2019.

Janice Dickinson

Janice Dickinson, who has declared herself as the world's first supermodel, has neverbeen shy about admitting that she has undergone several plastic surgery procedures over the years.

In fact, in 2013, she even declared herself bankrupt after it was revealed that she owed almost $1 million in taxes and unpaid cosmetic bills.

At the time of her bankruptcy filing, the star - now 67 - owed $8,000 to Beverly Hills dermatologist Arnold Klein and over $8,000 in debt to the Beverly Hills Anti-Aging Center.

She readily admits she has gone under the knife – she has had a breast enlargement, tummy tuck, neck and facelifts, liposuction and Botox.

In 2007, her son Nathan said he was desperate for her to stop, a plea to which the model responded: 'I won't do any more plastic surgery – if he's looking.'

In 2015, she appeared on Botched to fix a breast enlargement done 30 years prior which had left her with rippling across her breasts.

During the episode, the former model was seen swearing, demanding drugs and, after her implants were replaced, walking around naked, which led Dr Terry Dubrow to brand her his worst patient ever.

Janice was once one of the world's top models, appearing on the covers of Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and Playboy magazines as well as working with fashion houses including Versace, Oscar de la Renta and Calvin Klein.

However her many surgical procedures have prompted shock from even her most dedicated fans over the years, with the fashion star's chameleon-esque habit of changing up her appearance leading critics to regularly brand her 'unrecognizable'.

Joan Van Ark

Knots Landing star Joan Van Ark, now 79, became one of the most famous faces on television when she starred as the glamorousValene Ewing in the long-running primetime Dallas spin-off.

However, in 2007, the actress stepped out modeling a very different look when she attended a glittering red carpet event - looking totally unrecognizable even to her most attentive of fans.

The former on-screen siren's once-iconic features appeared to have been completely altered as a result of what many assumed was a multitude of plastic surgery procedures.

Although the actress - who has become increasingly reclusive in recent years - has never addressed speculation that she's gone under the knife, her drastic new image prompted a flurry of intrigue and led to a slew of headlines and reports suggesting that she had 'ruined' her looks with plastic surgery.

Ironically, Van Ark had just filmed a guest appearance on the plastic surgery-focused thrilled Nip/Tuck when she made her 2007 red carpet appearance - with a source telling the Daily Mail at the time that she 'required hours of hair and makeup preparation'.

'Rail-thin Joan was said to have only consumed several glasses of water with honey and one banana all day,' the insider claimed, adding that the crew on the show had to spend 'four hours' perfecting the lighting set-up to 'perfectionist Joan's satisfaction'.

Simon Cowell

Simon Cowell's very taut-looking face has sparked huge concern from fans in recent years - and prompted a flurry a speculation about what cosmetic procedures were behind his seemingly-ageless appearance.

As recently as January, Simon's smooth complexion was making headlines the world over and sparking fresh interest in his looks, particularly as the America's Got Talent judge had claimed just months earlier that he was done with cosmetic procedures, having admitted to going 'too far' with Botox.

The 63-year-old told The Sun that he had been left looking 'unrecognizable' as a result of his obsession with injectables and had decided to stop when his latest look left eight-year-old son Eric in hysterics.

He previously told the Sun: 'There was a phase where everyone was having their faces pumped full of this and the other.

'I saw a picture of me from 'before' the other day and didn't recognize it as me first of all.'

The star, who shares his son with partner Lauren Silverman, 45, revealed that as a result he no longer has any filler in his face.