Selena Gomez Shuts Down Plastic Surgery Rumors, Shares Selfies Over the Years: ‘Faces, Phases’

It’s no secret that celebrities are subject to intense scrutiny about their physical appearance. If you grew up in the early-2000s, you may remember a constant influx of plastic surgery rumors stamped on every gossip magazine. As it so often goes, female celebrities’ bodies are put under the microscope the most— even in 2024.

Selena Gomez, 32, took to TikTok to address rumors about whether she has undergone cosmetic procedures. The “Only Murders in the Building” star, who has the autoimmune disease lupus and underwent a kidney transplant, has often been shamed for a “change” in her appearance by social media users. Of course, while Gomez rose to fame on “Wizards of Waverly Place” when she was 15 years old, it’s been nearly two decades since then. We all change over time— men included— but women are consistently judged for simply… existing.

Ahead, find out what the actress replied on TikTok about cosmetic surgery rumors, and how she responded to the drama in an Instagram post.

It all started with a TikTok post… and Gomez set the facts straight

The chisme started when TikTok user and plastic surgery PA Marissa Barrionuevo posted side-by-side photos of Gomez as a teenager and now. While the TikTok user often posts videos theorizing about celebrities’ cosmetic procedures, she did not speculate on whether Gomez has gone under the knife.

“I think she has been through so much in her life, especially medically-related, so I don’t think it’s fair to speculate whether or not she’s gotten cosmetic things done,” the TikToker stated. “I don’t know what to attribute any of these changes to… When it comes to Botox and filler, I do these things when I’m pretty confident I know what someone has gotten done.”

“But when it comes to [Gomez], I literally have no idea what to attribute her physical changes to,” she continued. “People say lupus, people say other things, I don’t know, and at the end of the day, let’s just leave her be. I feel like she’s been through enough in her life and she’s beautiful regardless.”

Ok, so all good right?! Well, maybe not for Gomez— at least according to her comment on the video. The actress may have seen the video’s caption and cover photo and commented on that, or she may have just been reacting to other users’ comments. One look at the comments section shows replies like: “She has got surgery done and she has medication that affect her,” “She’s 100% had Botox on her forehead,” and “Steriods. I’ve taken high doses for lupus and they really affect your facial features.”

So, understandably, Gomez took to the comments to say she’s had enough. The 32-year-old star wrote: “Honestly I hate this. I was on stripes because of flare up.” Some users believe “stripes” was an autocorrect mistake for “steroids,” a medication sometimes prescribed for lupus flare ups.

Later, the actress admitted to one cosmetic procedure, but quickly closed the case. “I have Botox. That’s it. Leave me alone.”

TikTok user @marissathepa responded to Gomez’s comment by making a separate video. “I agree with you. I do think that we should leave you alone, and I said that in the video,” she stated. “You don’t owe it to anyone to tell us why you don’t look the same as what you did when you were a teenager.”

“So, I am sorry if that made you feel any sort of way. I adore you, and any before-and-after that I have posted of celebrities and stuff, I try to do it with so much grace, and not to tear people down.”

The next day, Gomez took to Instagram and shared a post that seemed related to the TikTok discussion. The actress posted a slideshow of seven selfies, captioning it with, “faces, phases.” The selfies show Gomez’s face over the years, which has always been (!) gorgeous:

And of course, by the caption, the star seemed to remind everyone that at 32 years old, her face has had many “phases” over the years— just like every other human.

Over on X, many users have defended Gomez in the past from trolls who comment on changes in her appearance. One user wrote, “Lupus or not, some people’s cruelty knows no bounds, as they inflict pain through body shaming.”

Another commented, “Selena Gomez is very public about having lupus… It’s disgusting and insensitive to see someone dealing with an autoimmune disease being mocked.”

And as many have stated, some steroids taken for lupus can lead to swelling. Whether or not this is Gomez’s case, suffice to say… everyone should be kinder and let others be.