Fans claim Reese Witherspoon looks ‘unrecognisable’ as InStyle cover shoot slammed

Reese Witherspoon has appeared on the cover of a fashion magazine, infuriating fans who say she is “unrecognisable” in the shots.

A fashion magazine is copping heat for allegedly photoshopping its latest cover to make Reese Witherspoon look younger.

Readers were quick to judge after InStyle unveiled its December/January 2022 shoot with the “unrecognisable” 45-year-old Oscar winner on Instagram.

On the cover, Witherspoon posed in a sexy Dolce & Gabbana bodysuit and shorts, with her hair blown out in a fuller style. She also rocked a smokey eye, giving the Southern belle a much edgier vibe than usual.

“Did she approve this edit? This does not look like her,” one person asked.

“Come on, as if she needed any retouching! Just take a beautiful picture!”, a second person commented.

“Unrecognisable. What did you do to this gorgeous woman,” a third reader wrote.

“This is an awful retouching! I thought it was her daughter. smh,” another complained.

“Honestly, it’s painful to see. She’s gorgeous. Leave her face alone. It’s harmful – and sends the wrong message,” one more netizen critiqued.

The backlash was so great that the magazine’s editor-in-chief was forced to step in, shutting down critics in the comments section.

“Hey team, for those commenting on retouching, the brief was super sexy, a heavy eye and big hair,” InStyle editor Laura Brown wrote.

She added, “You rarely see Reese like this – which was the point. We are not in the business of embalming women at @instylemagazine.”

Fans said the ageless Reese Witherspoon doesn’t need any retouching. Picture: Robyn Beck / AFP

Brown then pointed to an “in-human-form” video of Witherspoon to prove that she looked exactly the same as the cover image.

It appears The Morning Show star was also unbothered by the criticism, as she posted it to her own Instagram to share with her followers.

“Oh heyyyyy @instylemagazine! Thanks for putting me on this month’s cover!”, she captioned her post, adding, “HUGE thanks to the creative team that made me feel like a Real Sassy Badass Biz Woman and biggest hug saved for my fellow badass biz lady @gayleking, who helped me unpack @themorningshow, what it means to be a journalist today, the sale of @hellosunshine and why women should learn to flex more! Check it out.”

This story originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission