The £100,000 facelift that's knocked years off Kris Jenner at 69

Yahoo

2 days ago

Everybody loves a transformation story. Had Grease been written in 2025, however, Olivia Newton John would have had to do a lot more than shuck on a biker jacket and a pair of Spandex trousers to make an impact. In a world where billions are vying for attention by ever more desperate means, transformations are two a penny.
These days, no diet, makeover or wardrobe glow-up in the world can compete with the impact of a really good facelift. We all know Ozempic can make us thin, and that a stylist can help us dress better. But turning back the years to look 10 years younger? That's still a mystery; a cloak-and-dagger affair whose dark magic occurs behind closed doors, by unknown hands, at unknown cost, with unknown pain and recovery time.
Which is likely why so many women can talk of little else these days than Kris Jenner. From the cruise shows of Avignon and Rome to the restaurants of Mayfair to the beach bars of Ibiza, the chat is the same: how, exactly, did the 69-year-old matriarch of the Kardashian clan get her dewy, youthful, plump-yet-taut new visage? And where can we get one?
While most women might buy some new clothes to wear to a hen weekend, Kris Jenner went out and bought a new face. When the hen weekend is thrown by Jeff Bezos' soon-to-be-bride Lauren Sanchez, and takes place in Paris, perhaps a Me+Em dress doesn't cut it. No matter that Sanchez, Katy Perry, Eva Longoria and Kim Kardashian were dressed up in their finest garb: they may as well have worn Shein. All eyes were fixated upon Jenner. 'She looks just like Kim!' the internet exclaimed. Which she did – despite being a quarter of a century older.
On Tiktok, the hashtag #krisjennernewface has been trending ever since Jenner unveiled her new look, with 57.5 million posts and counting. How-to videos abound, with everyone from surgeons to influencers to your auntie Karen chipping in with their opinions. 'She looks like she's fresh out of the womb,' says the influencer GK Barry, in a post that's had 468.9K views. 'What kind of freaky sorcery is this?' says another user. 'Who is this surgeon, because they are an artist.'
The 'artist' in question is Dr Steven Levine, the New York-based surgeon beloved by A-listers for his natural-looking facial enhancements. In a statement shared by Page Six, Levine's representatives confirmed him as the surgeon behind Jenner's most recent work, though they didn't give further details about the procedures.
Which hasn't stopped people from speculating. While most celebrities are understandably tight-lipped about the work they've had done, Jenner has previously been open about going under the knife, with one of her procedures even being documented on an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians. It's believed that this is Jenner's fifth surgery: as for what she's had done, that depends on who you ask. 'To achieve this sort of transformation in someone who is in their late 60s would likely require a deep plane face and neck lift, blepharoplasty and fat grafting to address lower face jowling and laxity in the neck area,' claims Dr Jonny Betteridge, founder of JB Aesthetics in Mayfair, London. 'This is likely revision surgery, as she would have had surgery in previous years.'
According to leading plastic surgeon Patrick Mallucci, Jenner's rejuvenated face has made an impact on account of being unusually well-balanced. 'Looking at her before and after pictures, it appears she's had a brow lift, possibly her upper eyelids operated on, and a very well-done facelift, possibly a deep plane, though it's very difficult to tell the technique by looking at a picture,' he surmises. 'When you look at the thirds of her face – the upper, middle and lower – she's got a very nice, balanced jawline. Unlike some of the facelifts of 20 years ago, where people looked very obviously overpulled and overtightened, this really brings out her good features.'
Mallucci's clinic in South Kensington, London, has seen a 30 per cent increase in facelift enquiries over the last five years, as the stigma of 'going under the knife' wanes, and procedures improve in terms of results and recovery time. 'While non-surgical treatments can complement face lifting and stave off the knife until later, ultimately there comes a time when only a facelift can truly rejuvenate an ageing face requiring anatomical improvement,' he says.
The 'Rolls Royce' of these is the deep plane. Where a traditional facelift tightens the skin, a deep plane lifts and repositions deeper layers of facial tissue, including sagging muscles and fat, allowing for more natural-looking results which are also longer-lasting. A traditional facelift typically lasts five to seven years: a deep plane can last for up to fifteen.
Their subtle results have made 'guess the deep plane' the internet's favourite parlour game, with Nicole Kidman, Anne Hathaway and Lindsey Lohan all recently being cited as allegedly having had the procedure, though this is pure speculation. For her part, Lohan says her appearance is thanks to a healthy diet and laser treatments. Celebrities who have admitted to having deep plane facelifts include the socialite Caroline Stanbury (who had hers aged 49) and the designer Marc Jacobs (who had his at 58).
'There is no such thing as an ideal age for a deep plane facelift, but over the age of 40-45 would generally make a great candidate,' notes the consultant plastic surgeon Mark Solomos. 'You can actually do a deep plane endoscopic facelift at the age of 35 without any obvious scars in front of the ear.' Nor does any previous work tend to be a barrier. 'The only things that would matter would be treatments such as Sculptra. Hyaluronic fillers don't matter too much unless you've overdone it, likewise excessive radio frequency, which tends to burn the fat and creates problems in the subcutaneous tissue.'
As for whether 'the Kris effect' means surgeons should now be braced for a wave of clients wanting to look not 10 but 30 years younger than their age, Dr Mallucci believes that managing expectations is key. 'It's very important that I understand what it is that my patients are looking for, but it's equally important that I communicate to them what's realistically achievable. Promising results which are not surgically achievable serves no purpose and only causes disappointment.'
And also a depleted bank balance. While a deep plane facelift typically costs between £25,000 – £60,000, it's estimated that the bill for Kris Jenner's work cost in the region of £100,000. Small change for the world's most successful 'momager', but a prohibitively eye-watering amount for most. When your life is lived through a long lens, in the pressure cooker that is Hollywood, it takes more than 'lots of water' to look your best. For better or for worse, the six figure facelift era starts here.
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