Ariana Grande Clears Up Botox Joke At Award Show
Ariana Grande stirred speculation recently at the 36th annual Palm Springs International Film Awards when she joked about using Botox and Juvederm while accepting a Rising Star award. Botox and Juvederm are popular injectable brands for reducing fine lines and wrinkles.
“You don’t know how much it means to me,” Grande said. “I’ve been performing since I was a child, so I never thought at the age of 31 I would be hearing the words ‘rising star’ again, so I wanted to start by thanking my two friends: Botox and Juvederm.”
Later, Grande clarified to Entertainment Tonight that her remarks were intended as humor. “Oh my gosh,” she said, laughing. “My joke. My bit. I’m still clean. I’m clean. But when I start going again, I will let you know. I mean it.”
She elaborated on why she felt it necessary to address the speculation surrounding her joke.
“I really want to be transparent as a beauty founder,” she said. “As a founder of R.E.M. Beauty, I think it’s important to have transparency. I love [Botox], but I am still four years clean.”
Grande’s comments come after her recent discussion of societal beauty standards in an interview with French YouTuber Sally and Cynthia Erivo.
“I have heard every version of it, of what’s wrong with me. And then you fix it, and then it’s wrong for different reasons,” Grande said, appearing emotional.
In today’s culture, where cosmetic procedures, “anti-aging” products, and social media filters dominate, public pushback to such trends has become less common. However, some celebrities have openly embraced natural aging and spoken out against societal pressures to appear young.
For instance, Sarah Paulson shared her perspective on aging during an April 2024 interview with Pedro Pascal for Interview Magazine. Similarly, Drew Barrymore has expressed her personal decision to avoid plastic surgery while maintaining respect for others who choose differently.
“I haven’t done anything, and I’m going to maintain that as long as possible,” Barrymore told PEOPLE in November 2023. “I have zero judgment for anyone doing anything. But I don’t see myself resorting to it.” She added, “And I look forward to seeing what I look like as a leather bag in the future!”
Sharon Osbourne also shared her regret about a 2021 facelift, telling The Sunday Times in December 2023, “That was the worst thing that I ever did. I looked like Cyclops.”
Pink, in a 2020 since-deleted Twitter post according to PEOPLE, candidly reflected on the challenges of aging, acknowledging how it felt “weird” but affirming her effort to embrace it.
