# Actors/Actresses whose looks changed drastically **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 12, 2020, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813 "2020-10-12T17:05:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/1 "2020-10-12T17:05:05Z")
I was recently re-watching _Newsradio_ and it struck me how much both Dave Foley and Joe Rogan’s looks have changed since the series (and since _Kids in the Hall_, but Dave pretty much looked the same in _KITH_ and _Newsradio_). Yes, they both got older and fatter and balder like we all do. But Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep still pretty much look the same as when they were young actors. Some actors’ bodies just go a different way. Rogan & Foley still look good, IMHO. They just look good in a completely different way. I also noticed the same about Bradley Whitford. He’s a stone cold silver fox now and looks way different than he did when he was on _The West Wing_. I think some people might try to point out Ted Danson, who leaned into his white hair and added glasses. But I’m not so sure he looks fundamentally different than _Cheers_ Ted. He’s still tall and thin with the same haircut, and his face is unmistakably Ted Danson. Who else do you think has really changed their look since their earlier days, AND is still working? ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/2 "2020-10-12T17:12:26Z")
Child actors probably aren’t what you’re looking for, but Haley Joel Osment looks quite a bit different nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/3 "2020-10-12T17:16:46Z")
When Portia de Rossi returned to the newer Arrested Development seasons, I kept waiting for the joke about how it was a totally different actress playing her not realizing that it was still her. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/4 "2020-10-12T17:17:26Z")
Jennifer Grey notoriously had plastic surgery on her distinctive nose after star turns in _Dirty Dancing_ and _Ferris Bueller’s Day Off_. Unfortunately, it rendered her unrecognizable as that actress and she has said in interviews that it was the worst mistake of her career. Nonetheless, she has enjoyed steady if less prominent roles since then. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/5 "2020-10-12T17:23:11Z")
In fact her nose job was the subject of a joke in a [sitcom](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_Like,_You_Know...) she appeared in about twenty years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/6 "2020-10-12T17:25:31Z")
Here’s John Slattery, the dude who played Roger Sterling in Mad Men, back in an earlier role in the movie _Sleepers._ [![](https://aveleyman.com/Gallery/2017/S/16068.jpg) ](https://aveleyman.com/Gallery/2017/S/16068.jpg) Very generic looking until his hair turned white, THEN he looked unforgettable! ---
**Author:** ![Didi44](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47c2d/32.png) [@Didi44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Didi44)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/7 "2020-10-12T18:45:55Z")
I’m trying my best to be careful with this, but IMO Natalie Portman and Brooke Shields were extraordinarily beautiful as children, but grew up to be “ordinary” beauties. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/8 "2020-10-12T19:03:56Z")
> [@Didi44](#): > > I’m trying my best to be careful with this, but IMO Natalie Portman and Brooke Shields were extraordinarily beautiful as children, but grew up to be “ordinary” beauties Is that “drastically” changed? ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/9 "2020-10-12T19:07:17Z")
Eddie Van Halen’s recent death has led to my seeing pictures of what David Lee Roth looks like [nowadays](https://townsquare.media/site/295/files/2018/12/roth.jpg?w=980&q=75). I don’t know how much it’s just because he has short hair now, versus how much he’s changed due to age, but I would not have recognized him. Okay, David Lee Roth isn’t really an actor, but I think he counts for thread purposes. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/10 "2020-10-12T19:08:05Z")
That’s striking! I’ll allow it 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Didi44](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47c2d/32.png) [@Didi44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Didi44)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/11 "2020-10-12T19:08:19Z")
To me, yes. They look drastically different than someone like Miranda Cosgrove who looks like she just had her 11 year old face pasted on her adult body. It’s kind of creepy to me. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/12 "2020-10-12T19:09:03Z")
Jack Elam went from nasty henchman to cuddly comic relief. [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/JackElam.jpg) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/JackElam.jpg) [![](https://s.hdnux.com/photos/12/21/00/2691101/6/1200x0.jpg) ](https://s.hdnux.com/photos/12/21/00/2691101/6/1200x0.jpg) He changed his entire movie persona when he grew a beard in the late 60s. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/13 "2020-10-12T19:11:26Z")
[![](https://i.redd.it/7dln0kgklvd01.jpg) ](https://i.redd.it/7dln0kgklvd01.jpg) [![](https://travsd.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/hqdefault-1.jpg) ](https://travsd.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/hqdefault-1.jpg) Also changed her name from Marie Blake to Blossom Rock. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/14 "2020-10-12T19:14:38Z")
Jack Elam and Blossom Rock are still working (as asked in the OP)? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/15 "2020-10-12T19:16:38Z")
I’m surprised the first post was not Mickey Rourke. Not that I think it was an intentional change of image. I have no idea WTF happened to him - are we including people who just turned into complete wrecks? ETA: boxing, apparently, and a terrible facelift ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/16 "2020-10-12T19:22:14Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > ETA: boxing, apparently, and a terrible facelift As I’ve been trying to think of examples to post in this thread, I’ve been explicitly discounting actors whose faces changed dramatically due to plastic surgery (e.g., Renee Zellweger); I don’t know if the OP would consider them to qualify. ---
**Author:** ![Didi44](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47c2d/32.png) [@Didi44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Didi44)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/17 "2020-10-12T19:24:24Z")
Mariska Hargitay’s face looks as if she’s spend the last 21 years in the real SVU with her stress wrinkles. Fortunately, it actually works within the context of the series. Same thing with Jane Fonda, who was such a hottie when she was young, then turned frighteningly into her Dad in a later years. _Shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/18 "2020-10-12T19:28:03Z")
James Spader: [https://i0.wp.com/slaysmokingforever.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/James-Spader-III.jpg?resize=450%2C450&ssl=1](https://i0.wp.com/slaysmokingforever.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/James-Spader-III.jpg?resize=450%2C450&ssl=1) [https://tvguide1.cbsistatic.com/mediabin/showcards/celebs/j-l/thumbs/james-spader\_768x1024.png](https://tvguide1.cbsistatic.com/mediabin/showcards/celebs/j-l/thumbs/james-spader_768x1024.png) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/19 "2020-10-12T19:29:38Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Jack Elam and Blossom Rock are still working (as asked in the OP)? Well, I’ll amend what I said to indicate that what I’m looking for are people who were working when they looked like THAT and still working when they looked like THIS. “Still working today” is not what I meant. As for Mickey Rourke, sure, I’ll take it, even though he got plastic surgery. TBH I am not that familiar with him as an actor so he didn’t cross my mind. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813/20 "2020-10-12T19:32:38Z")
Mark Hamill, who had teen-heartthrob good looks as a young actor, became fairly rough-faced as he got older (even if you discount the beard). [![](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/08/2b/56/082b56477de3b66c36e20f8def04af42.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/08/2b/56/082b56477de3b66c36e20f8def04af42.jpg) [https://tvguide1.cbsistatic.com/mediabin/background/celebs/mark-hamill-164626-4.png](https://tvguide1.cbsistatic.com/mediabin/background/celebs/mark-hamill-164626-4.png) It’s well-known that Hamill was in a bad car accident in 1977 (as filming for _Star Wars_ was wrapping up), which left him with a broken nose and cheekbone; it’s possible that that contributed to his changing facial features, though Hamill has long said that his injuries from the accident were not as bad as reported, and dismisses long-standing rumors that he had to undergo significant plastic surgery after the accident. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-whose-looks-changed-drastically/922813.md?page=2)