Photos Of Eva Mendes That Make Us Miss Her Pre-Plastic Surgery Face

A decade after leaving the spotlight to focus on her marriage and being a mom, Eva Mendes made a rare appearance on "Today" to discuss her life outside of the glitz and glam of Hollywood, in March 2024. The star, who hasn't acted since 2014's "Lost River," shocked viewers with how different she looked, sparking a fresh wave of plastic surgery rumors. "What did she do to her face?" one Instagram user wondered. A plastic surgeon who helped deconstruct Eva Mendes' gravity-defying new look opined that she invested in some extensive cosmetic work. "A deep plane facelift, neck lift, and additionally facial surgery can run between $35K-200K depending on the facial need," Dr. Patrick Davis exclusively told Nicki Swift. "Again, I'm not saying she had any of these things performed," as he hasn't treated Mendes. "But this is the range."

Although she hasn't gone on record to confirm or deny, the A-lister did admit to dabbling in cosmetic procedures during an interview with The Times while discussing being in her 50s. "I'm not afraid to try things that are safe, because most of these little treatments, let's say, are reversible," she confirmed in October 2024. "There have been times where I've regretted something," like Botox, for example, "and then you just wait it out." 

Mendes didn't elaborate further on her beauty routine, but she has made it clear that she supports plastic surgery. "I'm all for it. All. For. It," the former actor once wrote in response to claims she wasn't active on social media because she didn't like how her face looked after surgery (via The U.S. Sun). "As far as getting work done," she added, "I'll do that whenever I please." Yet looking back at old photos, we really miss Mendes' pre-plastic surgery face.

Eva Mendes joined plenty of other Hollywood A-listers at Sony's Global Marketing Conference Gala Dinner in Beverly Hills, in 2006. Sporting minimal makeup and soft, brown waves that perfectly framed her face, she turned heads without even trying. The "Hitch" star has been refreshingly candid about her insecurities regarding her physical appearance throughout her time in the spotlight. "I remember seeing this photo back then and thinking my face looked 'weird' and that my bone structure was odd," Mendes captioned a still of her from her movie "Once Upon a Time in Mexico," (via People). "You know all those insecurities that a 26-year-old can have." Looking back, however, she wishes she hadn't been so self-conscious. 

Eva Mendes is one of those actors whose face has a lot of unique character — angular jaw, arched eyebrows, sultry eyes, and a signature mole on her left cheek, which is often referred to as a beauty mark. Walking the red carpet at the "La Dolce Vita" world restoration premiere, at the 2010 Rome Film Festival, Mendes' natural beauty was impossible to deny. She wore a strapless red silk dress by Gucci that complemented her warm skin and enhanced her natural glow. Clearly, she needed no extra help to look this stunning.

Eva Mendes was practically glowing when she launched her fragrance line Angel in collaboration with the late fashion designer and perfumer Thierry Mugler in 2011. Wearing a floor-length bustier dress, also by Mugler, Mendes' sexy ensemble was offset perfectly by her soft makeup and gorgeously flawless complexion. It may have been around this time that the Latina beauty started dabbling in minimal cosmetic enhancements such as Botox, but whatever she may have been doing was still subtle enough that her natural beauty remained untouched.

Eva Mendes truly looked incredible prior to her rumored cosmetic procedures. Here, she was seen at the afterparty for the New York premiere of her film "The Place Beyond The Pines," in 2013, where the actor starred opposite her husband Ryan Gosling. "I use coconut oil as a moisturizer and I combine yogurt and sea salt to exfoliate," Mendes detailed of her pared-back beauty routine, in an interview for "The Violet Files" (via Hola! magazine). "If I'm going out and looking tired and puffy (which happens a lot these days), I dip my face into a bucket of ice water." But clearly, that was before she discovered the magic of in-office treatments and plastic surgery.

Eva Mendes was a total stunner at the opening of her pop-up store with New York & Company in Los Angeles, in 2014. She modeled one of her own designs, a black-and-white floral embroidered dress, which the actor paired with flawless makeup that allowed her natural beauty to shine through. It was the Mendes we all fell in love with — back when her look was still (mostly?) natural and before she practically vanished from view and re-emerged looking, let's just say, different. We'll never get how the former actor looked at this face and thought: "I need surgery."

Eva Mendes was all-smiles at the Eva Mendes X New York & Company Fall/Winter 2016 runway show during New York Fashion Week. Clad in a crimson lace number from her own eponymous collection, the actor-slash-designer looked positively glowing with barely any makeup and soft, glowing skin, once again allowing her natural beauty to take centerstage. She paired her smokey eye with light bronzer, perhaps some concealer here and there, and a glossy lip. Notably, the "Lost River" star was about 42 years old here and had already given birth to her two children with Ryan Gosling, yet she still looked as beautiful and youthful as ever.