Amber Heard, Before and After

Our first shot dates back to 2005, when Amber was 19 years old. Already, she was lightening her natural brown hair colour to blonde, which somewhat washes her out. What’s different about her face compared to now? Her nose seems a bit more prominent, but I think it’s mainly her mouth. For starters, we can see that her upper lip was a lot thinner than the lower one.

She struck almost the exact same pose two years later, and not much about her look had changed. Here, her hair is a darker blonde, and styled in the piecey waves that were popular during that era. Again, the key feature that stands out is her mouth. Besides her thinner top lip, she appears to have an overbite that is making her front teeth protrude over her lower lip. 

In this photo, Amber looks even less like herself. While her skin was super pale before, she’s now rocking a deep spray tan and tons of blush. (Plus, I can’t help but notice how out of style that smoky eye makeup looks, even though we all thought it was so “classic” at the time!) At least her hair is moving toward the golden tone that works best for her. Also note how her top lip is starting to become fuller.

At age 22, she leaned into the old Hollywood moment that was big in the mid-‘00s, wearing a mane of retro-inspired ringlets with bold red lips and smoky eyes. (Remember how Scarlett Johansson used to wear this type of look as well?) She may have had her first round of dental work by this point, as her teeth seem whiter, and possibly more pushed back. 

Who knew Amber once had black hair?! Between that and the precise, skinny eyebrows, this is such a Megan Fox aesthetic (who was at her peak popularity back then). But there’s something else going on, with her lower face. Compared to 2007, she’s lost a lot of fat there, and I’m not sure it’s just from normal aging.

Out of all the photos, I found her to be the most unrecognizable in this one. She’s still got the harsh black hair, and the way it’s styled—plus the makeup—is so not her. But that’s not the only reason she looks different. Besides the hollowed lower cheeks, her nose seems wider than it is now, with a slightly bulbous tip. Plus, she appears to have heavier upper eyelids, with more excess skin.

By the end of the year, it was back to blonde hair... or at least, an interesting mix of platinum roots and brassy ends. Not only is it too light for her skin tone, but the colour is uneven and looks really fried. I’m not sure what the two indentations on her cheek might indicate... could she have started with injections already, at 23?

Then, for a brief moment, Amber returned to her natural hair colour (which, until now, she’d never revealed on the red carpet). So much better than the extreme black or blonde, yes? You can also see the improvements made to her smile (although more are forthcoming). It’s funny how the messy updo, brown eyeshadow, pink lipstick and dusting of body glitter seem so dated now.

Alas, the brunette didn’t last, and it was back to a brassy, unnatural-looking blonde (with eyebrows to match!) the following year. Together with the false lashes, heavy-handed makeup and bright, white teeth, she looks more like a newscaster than Hollywood’s next big star. Speaking of teeth, these look like veneers, but they’re a little too big for her face. Her nose is also looking quite sculpted all of a sudden.

I suspect it was around 2012—the same year she began dating Johnny Depp—that Amber underwent some further enhancements to her facial features. Here, her teeth are the right size for her mouth, her top lip is more in balance, and her eyelids may even have been tweaked for a more wide-open look. Of course, the overall styling is much improved, particularly her dye job. Suddenly, she has that star quality!

Finally, at age 27, she said goodbye to light blonde and hello to her (much more flattering) natural brunette. Also notice the lighter touch on the makeup, the subtle spray tan, and how her features are all in perfect balance. I’m especially marvelling over how much her smile has transformed compared to 2005-2007. 

I think 2014 was the year that Amber really “made it” as a celebrity, becoming a regular in the tabloids and on the red carpet. She certainly made a statement with this bouffant updo and bold, brown-toned eyeshadow. (And to show off the latter, she seems to have more lid space available now.) With an open mouth smile, we can see how much the size, shape and position of her teeth have changed.

By 2015, it becomes rather obvious that she was dabbling with hyaluronic acid lip fillers, at least in her top lip. There’s been a dramatic increase in volume since 2005, particularly if you look at the outer corners (which used to disappear). In other news, I think she finally landed on her “Life Colour” with this warm, dark honey blonde.