What Happened to Donatella Versace’s Face? A Look at Donatella’s Transformation through Her Many Surgeries

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Donatella Versace

Photo: Stuart C. Wilson / Stringer/ Getty Images

Since the death of Gianni Versace, Donatella Versace has been the face of House of Versace. But what happened to Donatella Versace’s face? Over the years, Donatella Versace’s appearance has transformed dramatically through surgeries. Read on and look at Donatella Versace’s before and after pics to see what we mean. 

Gianni Versace tapped his sister, Donatella Versace, for his fashion house because of her natural talent for public relations. She was a fixture by his side as the rock ‘n’ roll designer’s muse.

After her brother’s death, Donatella Versace became the face of Versace S.p.A. Her trademark style has spouted dozens of copycats, but her face is inimitable.

However, Penelope Cruz comes remarkably close to the O.G. in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story! Cruz channeled the old Donatella Versace and nailed the way she looked decades ago.

Now 20 years after her brother’s death, Donatella Versace’s physical appearance has changed drastically, and not just because of age. This has many wondering why the fashion mogul looks the way she does now.

The Many Faces of Donatella Versace

Donatella Versace is the youngest of the Versace children. Her brother, Gianni Versace, followed in their dressmaker mother’s footsteps and completely took over the fashion world.

Although, Versace followed her brother to help with the public relationships side of things, Gianni Versace found a better use for her as a muse and critic.

Donatella Versace entered the fashion world when her brother launched a perfume called Blonde, which he dedicated to her. He also gave her her own label, Versus, which was later brought under Versace S.p.A.’s umbrella.

At 37, Donatella Versace had worked with her brother for more than a decade while raising her children, Allegra and Daniel Versace. She was at her most natural with her real full lips before 1997.

A Strong Front

In 1997, three months after her brother was killed by Andrew Cunanan in Miami, Donatella Versace arrived at the VH1 Fashion Awards looking fresh-faced and noticeably younger than 42.

That same year, she attended the Met Gala with Cher and Madonna.

The Look of a Power Player

As the new head of design of Versace S.p.A., Versace steered the company into a new direction. A year after Gianni Versace’s death, she held her first fashion show in the Versace Atelier at the Hôtel Ritz Paris, a venue her brother always used. She built the runway over the pool just as Gianni did every season, but she chose sheer glass.

The show was successful enough to take away attention from the family’s personal tragedy to their designs. Around that time, Donatella Versace started sporting her signature makeup trend, which included her trademark smoky eyes and bronze tan.

Donatella Versace’s Surgeries

Divorced from former Versace model, Paul Beck, in 2000, Donatella Versace’s face appeared quite different by 2002. Cosmetic surgery experts believe fillers were the cause.

In 2013, Donatella would herself admit that Botox is part of her beauty regime and doesn’t believe in an “all-natural” look for women.

Rehabilitating Look

Versace was reportedly addicted to drugs but gave them up in 1997 after her brother’s death. However, reports say she started abusing them again years later.

After a breakdown during her daughter’s 18th birthday party, Versace checked into rehab in 2005. Post-rehab, her tanned look got darker, and she sported drastically different lips, compared to her natural full ones. Her new moue would go down in pop-culture infamy as the “Trout Pout.”

Easy on Fillers

In 2008, Versace ditched the tanner and appeared to have cut back on the fillers. Her face still looked like it went under the knife a few times, though.

Draw the Line

By 2011, the lines start showing on Versace’s face. Now, her skin looks different, and her face is now almost unrecognizable from the old Donatella Versace. Cosmetic surgeons believe that she underwent quite a few procedures over the span of a few years.

Versace’s toned physique also got a few stares. And, some reports claim that Donatella said she stopped working out with a trainer because they wouldn’t let her smoke.

Eyebrow-Raising

Starting in 2014, Donatella Versace’s skin began to look waxy. Her eyebrows also looked lower, and her defined lips became more prominent.

Prima Donna

In 2018, Versace’s waxy skin, smoky eyes, trout pout, sculpted body, and platinum hair have become her most recognizable features.

Ever since Donatella and Kylie Jenner hit the Met Gala sporting matching hairstyles, Jenner’s reported cosmetic procedures are likened to Versace’s changing looks.