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Naya Rivera, Before and After

The beauty evolution of the ‘Glee’ star.
Naya Rivera before and after

If you’ve ever mistaken Naya Rivera for Kim Kardashian, join the club. In recent years, the 33-year-old actress and singer (who is best known for playing cheerleader Santana Lopez on Glee) has started to resemble Kim so much, they could be related. 

Besides sharing the same taste in makeup, hair and fashion, they even have similar features, like pillowy lips, plump cheeks, arched brows and long lashes. 

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But Naya didn’t always look so Kardashian-ified. Let’s examine her beauty transformation over the years, from 2004 until now.

From 2004: Naya as a Teen

At the 2004 Los Angeles Premiere of ‘Chasing Liberty’

Naya Rivera Chasing Liberty Los Angeles premiere 2004

In our first pic, Naya was only 16 years old—although she’d already been acting since age four. At the time, she had a prominent mole just below her lower lip, which she has since had removed. With her natural hair colour and no detectable makeup, she looks fresh-faced and pretty.

From 2009 to 2013: The ‘Glee’ Years

At the 2009 Los Angeles Premiere of ‘Bandslam’

Naya Rivera Bandslam Los Angeles premiere 2009

Five years later, she returned to the red carpet after landing her breakthrough role on Glee. She was 22 here, and appears to have bleached her teeth and possibly darkened her hair to a solid black. Other than that, I don’t detect any changes to her features, which are adorned with only false lashes, black liner, sheer lip gloss and blush. It’s a far cry from her present-day red carpet style!

At the 2010 Emmys

Naya Rivera Emmys 2010

As you can see from this 2010 red carpet appearance, Naya’s beauty vibe used to be a lot more playful and colourful. The oversized bun, headband, bangs and red lipstick are fun, but we’d never see her in these things now. Without heavy lashes, foundation or contouring, her makeup is flawless. And she has perfect teeth!

At PaleyFest 2011

Naya Rivera PaleyFest 2011

To me, this is one of the most telling “before” photos. With no smile and her gaze facing straight at the camera, you can see just how different her original features look versus how they are now. For starters, she had very heavy-lidded eyes, thinner brows and naturally full cheeks. Her lips may or may not be enhanced, but they still look natural at this stage.