They’ve not always had Hollywood smiles! From Tom Cruise to Celine Dion and Cheryl… dental experts weigh in on the work stars have had done to transform their teeth

When you think of celebrities, you’ll no doubt assume they have perfect smiles and pearly whites – but that’s not always the case, especially for those who found fame at an early age.

From pop royalty Cheryl Cole to Tom Cruise and even Celine Dion, it certainly isn’t uncommon to see stars undergoing an extensive teeth transformation while in the public eye.

So, what exactly have these famous faces perhaps had done to change the look of their smile? Dental expert Dr Rhona Eskander told The Daily Mail: ‘When you look at celebrity smiles over time, it’s very rarely the result of just one treatment. 

‘In most cases, what we’re seeing is a sequence of carefully staged improvements carried out over a number of years, rather than one dramatic intervention. 

‘The most common journey usually starts with orthodontics to improve alignment, followed by whitening, and then small cosmetic refinements such as bonding, veneers, crowns, or occasionally implant work to perfect proportions and surface detail.

‘What has changed significantly over the years is the aesthetic people are aiming for. The trend has moved away from very opaque, ultra-white, obviously “done” smiles, towards something far more natural, softer, and better integrated with the face. 

‘The best cosmetic dentistry now should not immediately announce itself, it should simply make someone look fresher, healthier, and more polished without it being obvious why.’

Read on to discover the celebrities who have undergone smile transformations… 

Cheryl Cole:

Once reported by The Daily Mail as owner of the ‘world’s best smile’, Cheryl Cole has not publicly admitted to undergoing any dentist work.

However, Cheryl has seemingly experienced a rather extensive transformation since she first entered the public domain as a member of Girl’s Aloud. 

Dr Eskander said: ‘Cheryl’s earlier smile had much more variation in tooth shape, which gave it a very recognisable and iconic character. 

‘When she later likely had veneers, the difference was obvious because the teeth became more symmetrical, more polished, and much more uniform in both shape and brightness. 

‘It was widely discussed at the time, but the reason the new smile has been so well received is that the veneers were done beautifully, they refined the proportions without making her lose her identity, which is why many people actually prefer the updated smile.’

Tom Cruise:

Tom Cruise is now widely renowned for his stunning smile, however he hasn’t always had such impeccable pearly whites.

Indeed, the film star, 63, sported crooked teeth in his younger years before getting them fixed. 

Images from his time on the 80s movie The Outsiders showed his far from straight gnashers before having a dental work done.

But over the years he has made sure to curate an impeccable grin to make him film star and red carpet ready.

In 2002, he openly wore braces at the age of 40 in a bid to improve his smile.  However, it is widely believed he used veneers to fix the misalignment. 

Cruise said at the time that it was to correct his overbite. He joked to David Letterman: ‘I couldn’t close my mouth properly for years, so they finally said, ‘please, shut your mouth.”

The actor explained he’d taken his children to a dentist to have their teeth checked out, but to his surprise the dentist instead told Cruise that he could benefit from braces.

He wore the brace starting in January 2002 until the October of that year before beginning work on his film at the time – The Last Samurai.

Dr Gizem Seymenoglu, whose appointments are arranged through Longevita, said: ‘Early photos suggest that some of his front teeth might have been slightly crowded, with one positioned a bit forward and another slightly back. There also appears to be a gentle inclination to one side.

The London-based dentist noted that initial improvements may have involved cosmetic dentistry procedures – possibly crowns or veneers – along with root canal treatment on the upper front teeth.

Even with these interventions, Dr Gizem observed that some subtle irregularities remain.

‘The dental midline – the line between the two central incisors – still appears slightly off-centre compared with the facial midline. From a clinical point of view, it might not be perfect, but overall it appears balanced and aesthetically pleasing.’

Celine Dion:

In a 2002 article, CNN reported Dion disappeared from the public eye for 18 months from 1985 – during which she underwent a major transformation.

‘Dion’s teeth were capped, her hairstyle changed, a new wardrobe was procured and she even took English classes,’ the story reads.

Up until this point, she had released a number of French albums and the hope was for her to reach a new and wider audience in English. She showed off her new look and musical sound in 1987’s Incognito at the age of 19.

In an interview with HELLO! in 2019, Celine hinted that her teeth may have been a childhood insecurity.

She said: ‘I was skinny and had problems with my teeth – I could go on and on.’

Dr Eskander claimed: ‘Céline Dion’s smile shows a much more definitive restorative change. The current level of uniformity in shape, brightness, and surface texture clearly points towards veneers rather than whitening alone. 

‘Veneers explain the consistency across the upper teeth, particularly how the tooth proportions and colour now appear much more harmonised than in earlier years. 

‘The result still suits her face because the proportions remain elegant and refined rather than heavy.’

Cristiano Ronaldo:

During his early days at Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo’s teeth often appeared on the slightly wonky side.

However, between 2003 and 2004, at around the ages of 18 to 19, the esteemed footballer was spotted wearing braces in a bid to straighten his teeth and correct overcrowding. 

Dr Eskander said: ‘Cristiano Ronaldo’s transformation appears to have been built primarily around orthodontic treatment and restorative replacement rather than extensive veneer work. 

‘In earlier photographs, the most obvious feature was a missing tooth, which made the smile appear less symmetrical overall. 

‘Orthodontic treatment helped align the teeth around that space before an implant was likely placed to restore balance. 

‘Whitening then perhaps contributed to the brighter, more polished finish seen today. The result is a smile that looks very even, but much of that improvement comes from alignment and replacing the missing tooth rather than dramatic cosmetic reshaping.’

Matthew Lewis: 

During his time filming the Harry Potter franchise, Matthew Lewis was under contract not to fix his teeth in a bid to maintain his character, Neville Longbottom’s, ‘geeky’ look.

He told The Independent that by the the third film, the producers had decided ‘they were uncomfortable with that, and thought, “No, we need to make him a bit geeky looking”, or geekier, I should say, so they put me in a fat suit and false teeth.’

He added: ‘Looking back on it, it doesn’t really bother me at all, but at the time, when you’re going through puberty and you’re on a film set with a lot attractive girls anyway, and then back at school as well, and you have to wear this fat suit, and have this long greasy hair – oh yeah, at the time, it was rubbish. It was really rubbish.’

However, once filming for the film series ended in 2010, Matthew opted to undergo dental work to rectify his smile.

Dr Eskander explained: ‘Matthew Lewis is a very good example of how major orthodontic correction can completely change a smile before any cosmetic treatment is added. 

‘His earlier smile showed more pronounced spacing, irregular edge levels, and fairly severe alignment issues, so orthodontics clearly came first and was the biggest part of the transformation. 

‘Once the teeth were aligned, whitening likely helped brighten the smile, and it is possible that veneers were later used on some teeth to further refine shape, edge symmetry, and overall uniformity. 

‘If veneers were involved, they appear to have been done conservatively, because the result still looks natural and proportionate rather than overtreated.’

Zac Efron:

Zac Efron has previously been at the centre of plastic surgery rumours – until explaining in 2022 how it was actually a nasty accident at home that caused the massive transformation in his face.

In an interview with Men’s Health Magazine, the actor recalled how he slipped on a pair of socks while running at his home causing him to smash his chin into a granite fountain.

The star explained that he lost consciousness only to wake up with ‘his chin bone hanging off his face.’

Efron said that when he was injured, the masseter muscles on the inside of his face and jaw then ‘compensated’ for his injury causing them to grow in size – hence his remarkable transformation.

He said this explains why he looked so different at the time. ‘The masseters just grew. They just got really, really big.’

Dr Eskander claimed: ‘Zac Efron had a very distinctive diastema early in his career, which became part of his recognisable look. 

‘That gap was most likely closed orthodontically, most likely with braces rather than bonding, because the surrounding tooth proportions remained natural and there is no obvious sign of added width to the incisors. 

‘His smile today looks more aligned, brighter and more polished, but still very believable, which suggests whitening and alignment rather than heavy restorative work.’