Uma Thurman, Before and After
When Uma Thurman showed up to the premiere of her new show 'The Slap' in 2015, she looked... nothing like Uma Thurman.
Some chalked it up to simply "aging." Uma is 44 years old now, but has been in the spotlight since her breakout role, age 18, in 1998's 'Dangerous Liaisons'—and even before that had modelled for Glamour and British Vogue. Of course she's not going to look exactly the same over a 30-year career span.
Others attributed her new look to the makeup artist, who went more than a little off-brand for Uma with red lips, bold brows and a complete absence of mascara and eyeliner.
Me? I suspect it's the same old cosmetic interventions that we see celebs going for time and time again. (But thankfully, just temporary!)
Let's examine Uma's beauty evolution...
Uma in 1999
Uma Thurman at the 1999 Oscars.
Paul Smith/Featureflash
Now this is a '90s look I can totally get behind! Uma was 29 here, and such a natural beauty. I love the ashy hair colour and delicate, ethereal makeup.
Uma in 2000
Uma Thurman at the 2000 ALS Tomorrow Is Tonight Gala.
Featureflash
Here, it looks like she lightened her hair colour to blonde, but she’s still not wearing much makeup—a far cry from today’s celebs! Her skin was incredibly flawless. Also notice how one eye is just slightly bigger than the other one.
Uma in 2001
Uma Thurman at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival opening ceremony.
Paul Smith/Featureflash
In 2001, she got a choppy layered cut with long, side-swept bangs. Again, not much makeup except for rosy cheeks and lips. I love her hair colour here (blonde but not too blonde).
Uma in 2003
Uma Thurman at the 2013 Los Angeles premiere of ‘Kill Bill: Vol. 1.’
S. Bukley/ImageCollect
Even Uma couldn’t escape the early ‘00s trends of deep fake tan and bleached blonde hair. Still, she looks remarkably youthful in her new lighter hair colour, choppy cut and sun-kissed skin. At 33, she is gorgeously glowing—and I believe, still intervention-free.
Uma in 2008
Uma Thurman at the 2008 London premiere of ‘The Accidental Husband.’
Star Max
By 2008, it was clear that Uma’s blonde was here to stay, except now it’s less brassy and she’s wearing it in soft waves. Sometimes, lining the waterlines can look harsh (especially on a fair-skinned blonde), but here the effect is super cool, with little other makeup.
Uma in 2012
Uma Thurman at the 2012 Elle Women in Hollywood Tribute.
Andrew Evan/PR Photos
At 42, Uma looks better than ever. She went warmer with both her hair colour and skin tone (the latter looking sun-kissed likely from a spray tan). Once again, she lined her eyes for definition, instead of relying on heavy false lashes or eyeshadow. I like this idea! It’s also nice to see that one faint line in between her brows. No Botox!
Uma in 2014
Uma Thurman at the 2014 BAFTA Awards.
Landmark/PR Photos
Here, Uma went with an elegant updo and smoky eye makeup. If she is getting Botox or fillers, they’re very subtle. Enjoy it, because...
Uma in 2015
Uma Thurman at the 2015 New York City premiere of ‘The Slap.’
Alberto Reyes/WENN
Who is this and where has she taken Uma Thurman?! When people were shocked at her new look, they assumed it was injectables gone too far. So her makeup artist, Troy Surratt, came to her defense. Her explained it as "effortless Parisienne chic" that we’re just too out of the loop to understand.
"Frankly, I’m quite surprised by the conversation. By now I would have thought that we were all open to and knowledgeable of the role that makeup plays in the world of fashion and particularly celebrity, as a medium for creative self expression. I think that women should feel open and free to experiment with different beauty looks—it’s only makeup, at the end of the day it all washes off. I wanted to give Uma a statement lip balanced by a more feathered brow. Uma and I discussed creating a look that was more editorial with soft natural lashes. As a makeup artist I’ve grown a bit tired of all of the lash-y looks and fake eyelashes that we’ve been seeing on the red carpet for some time now."
Uma in 2016
Uma Thurman at the 2016 amfAR New York Gala.
Dennis Van Tine/Star Max
MUCH better! Whatever happened in 2015, I'm happy to see Uma back to looking like herself again. Her makeup is pretty, simple and flattering: berry lips and smudgy charcoal around the eyes.
Conclusion
I can’t help but wonder if the makeup look of 2015 was actually intentional, designed to distract us from the other things going on—intervention-like things. Which in this case could be fillers, Botox... and maybe even an eyelid lift.
According to cosmetic surgeon Mark Norfolk: "I would say that she's probably had a recent course of strong chemical peels as well as some dermal filler injected into the cheeks and nasolabial area; which is all contributing to this swollen-looking finish, as it can have this effect immediately after undergoing these treatments. The thing that strikes me most is that her eye area looks very different. It looks as though she's had a recent lower blepharoplasty treatment, also known as eye bag removal. She isn't wearing any eyeliner or mascara, probably in order to avoid infection from the new surgery."
Then there is the matter of this blind item, which sure does sound like it's about Uma. Let this be a cautionary tale! If you're gonna do cosmetic interventions, do 'em slowly and go easy on the filler. But if all else fails, your makeup artist can always help distract people with a radically different look!
