What 22 celebrities look like without their signature hairstyles

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Zooey Deschanel's bangs are iconic, and she looks totally different without them.

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Sometimes, Zooey Deschanel pushes her bangs to the side.Danny Moloshok/Reuters; Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

Zooey Deschanel has worn bangs for so long that she's almost unrecognizable when she appears in public without them.

Sometimes, like at the 2013 Met Gala, Deschanel wears her hair in a deep side part, swooping her bangs off to the side so that it looks like she grew them out. But it doesn't seem like her bangs are ever going away for good.

She told Glamour in 2013 that she used her bangs to "help create an identity" when she started acting, saying, "You could say that I'm hooked on bangs. Would I ever give them up? I have, and I might again — for a role, perhaps — but I really don't feel like myself without them."

Reese Witherspoon is one of Hollywood's famous blondes, but she's actually a natural brunette.

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Reese Witherspoon isn't a natural blonde.Danny Moloshok/ Reuters; Alessia Pierdomenico/Reuters

Reese Witherspoon's blonde hair may be one of her famous features, but the actress is naturally a brunette. She confirmed this in a throwback photo of herself she tweeted in 2019, writing, "Wait … Is this my real hair color?"

Witherspoon has also dyed her hair brown through the years both as a personal choice and for roles. Most recently, she debuted chocolate-brown hair for her role on Apple TV Plus' "The Morning Show."

According to Entertainment Weekly, her character's hair color was Witherspoon's idea.

"I had just gotten done playing Madeline in 'Big Little Lies' and I wanted to do some stuff that was different. I didn't feel like my character would be concerned with her hair or maintaining a certain hair color," she said in 2020.

Halle Berry's pixie cut is almost as famous as she is, so it's always odd to see her with longer hair.

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Halle Berry said she prefers having short hair.Dimitrios Kambouris/GettyImages; Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Halle Berry has played around with different hairstyles, but she's most well known for her short pixie cut. She told InStyle in 2019 that the style actually helped her get roles early in her career.

"I think that's because the directors and producers actually saw me. Before that I had long hair like every other girl like me," she said. "So I have an affinity for short hair."

Whenever Berry plays around with extensions and opts for a longer, straighter hairstyle, it never lasts long — the actress prefers her hair on the shorter side.

"I am my best self when I have super short hair," she told the Huffington Post in 2014. "Growing up as a black woman, I felt that if I didn't have long hair, I wasn't going to be beautiful. I always thought that. Cutting my hair was freeing."

Harry Styles' long curls were so beloved that fans mourned their loss when he opted to chop them.

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Harry Styles changed up his look with short hair.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue

Throughout most of his career, Harry Styles was known for his head of thick, long curls. However, in 2019, the actor cut his hair short and started slicking his hair back for a straighter, more sleek look.

Some fans were pretty devastated and still find it hard to get used to seeing Styles without his curls.

Blake Lively is known for her beachy, blonde waves, but she's dyed her hair red before.

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Blake Lively dyed her hair red for a role.Jeff Spicer/Getty Images; Charles Eshelman/Getty Images

Blake Lively's long blonde hair that usually falls in tousled beach waves is one of her identifying features. So when she dyed her hair red for the 2011 film "Hick," many were shocked.

It made her look so different that her colorist, Rona O'Connor, told Glamour in 2011 that before she publicly debuted the new look, people didn't recognize her.

"She was able to walk around without being recognized for once. In fact, she had people stop and compliment her hair color and still not know who she was," O'Connor said.

Ariana Grande might be known for her high ponytail, but she does go without it sometimes.

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Ariana Grande is known for her high ponytail.Evan Agostini/Invision/AP; Kevin Mazur/WireImage

Once her music career took off, Ariana Grande started wearing her hair almost exclusively in a high ponytail.

She once revealed in a 2014 Facebook post that she started wearing the ponytail because her hair was so damaged after dyeing it to play Cat Valentine on Nickelodeon's"Victorious."

She said, "I wear it in a ponytail because my actual hair is so broken that it looks absolutely ratchet and absurd when I let it down. It's all that works for now (AND I'm comfortable for the first time in years)."

Still, Grande goes without her signature ponytail every once in a while.

Lupita Nyong'o usually shows off a short cut, but once in a while, she opts for longer braids.

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Lupita Nyong'o has changed up her hairstyle a few times over the years.Andrew Kelly/Reuters; Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images

Lupita Nyong'o's short, natural hairstyle is important to her.

In 2018, she told Porter magazine, "My hair is something that, historically, has been shunned. I mean, how often do you hear, 'You can't get a job with hair like that?'"

She continued, "Natural, African, kinky hair — it's often been painted as uncivilized or wild."

She also loves changing up her style with box braids sometimes. In a 2014 video for Vogue where she showed off her own braiding skills she said, "Your hair is your frame — it's so important,"

Jennifer Lawrence is known for her blonde hair, but she's gone dark for movie roles before.

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Jennifer Lawrence had dark hair while filming "Silver Linings Playbook."Mario Anzuoni/Reuters; GUS RUELAS/Reuters

Jennifer Lawrence plays around with the length and style of her hair a lot, but the blonde shade usually remains the same — unless she's in character.

Lawrence has dyed her hair dark for a few movies, like when she played Katniss Everdeen in "The Hunger Games" and Tiffany in "Silver Linings Playbook."

The actress seems to be the most comfortable as a blonde.

In 2012, Linda Flowers, head hair designer for "The Hunger Games," told PopSugar that Lawrence was so nervous about becoming a brunette that Flowers spent $30,000 on wigs so she could test out different dyes and shades before actually coloring her hair.

Jason Momoa's long hair is one of his defining features, and he almost looks like a different person when it's shorter.

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Jason Momoa is known for his long, flowing locks.Chris Jackson/Getty Images; Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Many people know Jason Momoa because of his long hair and matching beard — but he has gone short before. Back in 2013, Momoa sported a much shorter 'do and a trimmed down beard.

But it probably won't happen again anytime soon. In 2018, he told the Daily Telegraph, "My wife would leave me if I cut my hair, so I just don't cut my hair. I am not cutting my hair for a while, I will tell you that much."

Ariel Winter kept her hair dark for "Modern Family," but off-screen, she's experimented with strawberry-blonde locks.

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Ariel Winter dyed her hair strawberry blonde.John Salangsang/AP; Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

While playing Alex Dunphy on ABC's "Modern Family," Ariel Winter had to stick with her dark-brown hair.

But when she finished filming the show, she switched it up with a bright, strawberry-blonde shade.

Her hairstylist, Tabitha Duenas, released a statement in 2020 saying, "With 'Modern Family's' long run ending, Ariel is finally free to have the hair color she wants. She wanted to strip out the black and go back to her strawberry golden blonde look we had done previously when she was on break from filming. She said she never wants to go back to black again."

Vin Diesel has been bald for as long as he's been famous, so he's almost unrecognizable when he has to wear a hairpiece for movie roles.

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Vin Diesel (right) in "Find Me Guilty."Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney; Yari Film Group

Vin Diesel has always walked the red carpet with a clean-shaven, bald head, so it's hard to imagine him with hair.

But he's worn a wig in a few films including "Find Me Guilty" in 2006 and briefly in 2015's "The Last Witch Hunter."

And in 2016, Good Housekeeping published old photos of Diesel that showed him with a full head of hair. The photos were found in the 1985 senior class yearbook from New York City's Anglo American School.

Solange Knowles usually rocks a full, natural style, but she's shown off a few other looks over the years.

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Solange Knowles usually wears her hair natural.Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images; Larry Busacca/Getty Images

Solange Knowles is no stranger to trying out a new hairstyle or color, but she usually goes back to big natural curls.

Whenever she goes for something drastically different, it's always a surprise, like at the 2014 Met Gala, when she sported a straight pixie cut.

Knowles has spoken often about how much her hair means to her. In 2016, she released a song titled "Don't Touch My Hair," with lyrics like, "Don't touch my hair, when it's the feelings I wear, don't touch my soul, when it's the rhythm I know."

Alexander Skarsgård shocked everyone when he shaved his hair.

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Alexander Skarsgård surprised fans with his bald look.ANDREW KELLY/Reuters; Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage

In 2017, Alexander Skarsgård debuted a brand new hairstyle: a partially-bald look that made it seem like he was experiencing excessive hair loss.

The look was a pretty big departure from his usual full head of blonde hair, and it made him look like a completely different person.

Fortunately for fans, the cut was for his role in the 2018 film "The Hummingbird Project." The star never responded to the backlash, but he did let his hair grow out again after the movie.

Michelle Williams has had a platinum pixie cut for years, but there was a time when she had longer hair.

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Michelle Williams used to have longer hair.MARIO ANZUONI/Reuters; Reuters

You may know Michelle Williams by her signature, short hairstyle, but at the beginning of her career, the actress had longer blonde hair.

In 2011, Williams told British Elle that she chose to cut her hair short after her ex-partner Heath Ledger died in 2008.

"I cut it for the one straight man who has ever liked short hair, and I wear it in memorial of somebody who really loved it," she said.

Leighton Meester once surprised everyone by dyeing her normally dark hair a platinum blonde.

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Leighton Meester is known for her dark brown hair, but she's changed it up.Mireya Acierto/Getty Images; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

Leighton Meester has been known for her dark-brown hair since she started playing iconic brunette Blair Waldorf on The CW's "Gossip Girl."

So when she sported a shorter, platinum-blonde hairstyle, she made headlines. It turns out, the star just needed a change.

Meester told Byrdie in 2019, "You know, all along I've wanted something just totally and drastically different. My length was super long, my color was completely grown out, and I was just craving exactly the opposite of what I've had."

She continued, "Plus, this isn't an attempt to look natural. This is a completely different look. I always just thought I would go platinum at some point, but I had this, 'Oh, I'll try it someday' approach. But I guess today is that day."

Kerry Washington sometimes opts for natural curls over her typical straight hairstyle.

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Kerry Washington usually rocks straight hair.Getty Images; Steve Granitz/WireImage

You're probably used to seeing Kerry Washington with chemically straightened hair, whether it's stick straight or in softer waves. But sometimes Washington goes natural.

Washington told Redbook in 2016, "I'd been relaxing my hair since I was a little girl, so part of it was just wanting to see what would happen if I didn't. Quitting has been such a time-saver, and my hair feels much healthier now. It's been fun getting to know my real curls."

Jamie Lee Curtis has kept her hair super short for years, but there was a time when it was longer.

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Jamie Lee Curtis had long hair at the beginning of her career.DANNY MOLOSHOK/Reuters; Lee Celano/Reuters

A sporty pixie cut has been Jamie Lee Curtis' signature look for years. So photos of her from the beginning of her career, when she had longer hair, make her look completely different.

But her iconic pixie cut probably isn't going anywhere. Curtis told Good Housekeeping in 2018 that she is meticulous about keeping up the style.

"Hair this short needs to be cut every two or three weeks — it looks good on me," she said.

Taylor Kitsch's long hair was part of his heartthrob status, and seeing him with short hair changes his whole look.

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Taylor Kitsch had long hair for "Friday Night Lights."Andrew Kelly/Reuters; Danny Moloshok/Reuters

Most people know Taylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins from NBC's "Friday Night Lights," whose shaggy, shoulder-length hair was always kind of a mess, but in a good way.

So when he debuted a super short buzz cut in 2011, fans were pretty surprised.

Kitsch chopped off his hair and has mostly stuck with a close-cropped cut since "Friday Night Lights" finished filming.

When Janelle Monáe first stepped into the spotlight, she was known for her signature pouf, but now she switches her hair up more.

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Janelle Monáe used to rock her version of a pompadour all the time.Lucas Jackson/Reuters; Stephane Cardinale/Corbis/Getty Images

Janelle Monáe's iconic style is so famous that she even has a name for it.

In 2012, the singer told the Huffington Post that the style is called "The Monáe," saying, "It's pinned and twisted much differently than a pompadour, which I love as well."

Monae has also said that her hair has a special meaning for her. In 2014, she told Essence, "I haven't always paid much attention to my hair, but as I grew older I found the beauty in it. I've been natural for many years now."

In recent years, Monáe has rocked quite a few different looks including chunky braids, short pixies, and slicked-back styles.

Billie Eilish has become known for her dark and neon hair, but she recently switched things up.

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Billie Eilish traded her black-and-green hair for a blonde style.Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP; billieeilish/Instagram

Although Billie Eilish has rocked a few different hair colors since she rose to fame, she's had her signature neon-green and black style since February 2019.

Per BuzzFeed, in 2020, the singer responded to comments on her Instagram where people were asking her to change her hair color.

"This is the longest I've had the same hair color since I was 13 and that's on mental stability and growth," she wrote.

Despite staying true to black-and-green for two years, Eilish debuted a blonde style on her Instagram in 2021.

Andie MacDowell is another celebrity who's embraced going gray.

(left) andie macdowell on red carpet with brown hair (right) andie macdowell on red carpet with gray hair
The actress recently starting wearing her hair gray.Jean Baptiste Lacroix/FilmMagic/Getty; Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty

Actress Andie MacDowell is known for her dark, wavy locks, but she debuted her new salt-and-pepper look on Instagram in late 2020.

Then at the 2021 Cannes film festival, the actress embraced more of her gray hair on the red carpet.

She told Vogue in 2021 that her children encouraged her to embrace the new color.

"At the very beginning of quarantine, my hair started growing and every time my kids would see me, they kept telling me I looked badass with my gray hair," she said.

The actress also said that her managers told her "it's not time" to go gray.

"And I said, 'I think you're wrong, and I'm going to be more powerful if I embrace where I am right now,'" she told Vogue.

Jessica Chastain shocked fans by wearing a bleach-blonde wig at the 2023 Met Gala.

jessica chastain posing on the red carpet with her signature red hair and the actress on the red carpet with bleach blonde hair
Jessica Chastain is more well-known for having red hair.ERIC GAILLARD/Reuters; ANDREW KELLY/Reuters

Actress Jessica Chastain, who's currently starring in the Broadway play "A Doll's House," made a shocking hair transformation for the "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty" Met Gala. She walked the famous staircase in a tiered black gown and bleach-blonde hair.

Although the look was a wig and not a permanent dye job, it was a huge departure from her usual red tresses.

The actress previously donned blonde hair for her titular role in the 2021 film "The Eyes of Tammy Faye."

An earlier version of this story was published on May 2, 2023, and it was most recently updated on August 1, 2023.

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