Photo: Andrea Raffin / Shutterstock & Instagram
Impossibly high beauty standards affect everyone.
By Alexandra Blogier — Written on Mar 23, 2023
Liam Payne debuted a new look, leading fans to wonder if he’s had cosmetic surgery.
This month the 29-year-old pop singer's appearances on the red carpet of bandmate Louis Tomlinson's documentary premiere and images of Payne stepping out for dinner with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, 23, at London restaurant Sexy Fish got fans talking.
Did Liam Payne get plastic surgery?
Fans have speculated that Payne has undergone extensive cosmetic alterations and has been sharing a range of guesses including a rhinoplasty, lip filler, cheek implants, chin implants, jaw shave, brow bone reduction, botox, and an eye lift.
Payne’s face looks markedly more angular than it previously has. His chin and jaw are both more prominent.
Cosmetic surgeons claim Payne underwent buccal fat removal and jawline surgery.
Dr. Saleena Zimri of Skin Doctor Clinics speculates that “it does look like Liam has had some kind of buccal fat removal with the possibility of a jaw implant, also.”
Buccal fat removal is a procedure that’s been growing in popularity amongst celebrities and influencers. Fat pads are cut from the inside of the cheeks, giving the face a more angled appearance.
Zimri stated that “anyone considering buccal fat removal should consider the longer-term implications too. Well-defined cheek hollows and less fat on the face looks good now in younger patients, but as we age, we lose volume in our face, and this can cause us to look visibly older.”
Dr. Mo Hamed, who runs an aesthetics clinic, noted that Payne looks like he might have gotten jawline filler, as well. Hamed noted that jaw filler “is becoming a very popular treatment in my clinic where men are having jawline filler to masculinize their face, [as] a wider and chiseled jawline is associated with more strong masculine features.” Jawline surgery is permanent, as the implant grows into the face and attaches to the underlying bone.
According to the New York Center For Facial Plastic Surgery, patients receiving custom facial implant plastic surgery can expect to pay a minimum of $4000 for a procedure.
It’s nobody’s business but Payne’s what he chooses to do with his body, and he's clearly not immune to societal pressures of looking one certain way.
Payne's possible cosmetic surgery shows that men, too, are subject to unreachable beauty standards.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons released a 2020 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report, in which they found that men account for 8% of all cosmetic procedures performed in the United States, a total of 1.1 million cosmetic procedures a year. The report also stated that $16.7 billion was spent on cosmetic surgery in 2020.
In that same report, it was found that the top five male cosmetic surgical procedures included nose reshaping, eyelid surgery, cheek implants, liposuction, and ear surgery.
Payne seems to be no exception to living under the pressure of impossible physical standards. He commented that he gained weight during the 2020 lockdown, stating “I put a lot of weight on.”
“I did one performance on TV with the BAFTAs and I was disappointed with myself,” Payne explained further. “I didn’t look how I wanted to look.” Payne continued, “in your own self you know how you feel about it. Obviously, they say the camera adds ten pounds and it definitely did.”
Payne’s body-negative commentary highlights how living in the public eye can compound the insecurities one may already have about their looks.
While getting cosmetic surgery isn't inherently bad, it can lead to the formation of a negative feedback loop when someone feels that there is always something they need to “fix” about their physical appearance.
Payne’s face and body are his own, yet the changes in his appearance highlight that all humans are subject to a beauty standard that doesn’t always allow for radical self-love and acceptance.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.