Netflix's 'Uglies': a Yassified Dystopia

Co-authored by Jessica Sutherland, University of Warwick, and Heather Widdows, University of Warwick.

"Uglies," the Netflix adaptation of Scott Westerfield’s book series, delves into the beauty ideal headfirst. With imperfect bodies as the last frontier of this new "utopia," everyone is required to undergo cosmetic surgery at the age of 16 to become a "Pretty" and eliminate any physical difference between people. Until then, you are an "Ugly" and made to live in a boarding school where no teaching actually happens.

Source: Uglies / Netflix

We are introduced to 15-year-old "Uglies" Tally (Joey King), nicknamed "Squint" because of her squinty eyes, and Peris (Chase Stokes), nicknamed "Nose" for his unattractive nose. Except Tally doesn’t squint and Peris doesn’t have an unattractive nose. Using a beautiful cast to play "Uglies" seems like yet another Hollywood faux pas akin to calling Bridget Jones fat or Gwyneth Paltrow wearing a fat suit in "Shallow Hal." But does it inadvertently show us something deeper about the beauty ideal? If even the "Uglies" (those who haven’t undergone plastic surgery yet) conform in most, if not all, ways to the beauty ideal, then this shows just how hard it is to measure up.

And this is the message that director McG was supposedly aiming for. Speaking to The Wrap, McG said “nobody’s immune from this toxicity that’s out there of ‘It’s never enough. You can always have a thinner waist, bigger hips, fuller lips.’ Take your pick. You see it out there every day, and this movie is meant to be the antidote to that way of thinking,”¹ In Perfect Me, I (Widdows) identify how the beauty ideal is narrowing—we all must do more to fit in.² In this dystopian world, the pressure to conform has become law—if you don’t undergo surgery, you cannot live in the city with the "Pretties." Like an extreme version of our world, not measuring up means you will be excluded from accessing some of the goods of society.

The Instagram face-esque CGI used on "Pretties" in the film also goes to show just how narrow the beauty ideal has become.³ And even before the procedure, "Uglies" are able to envision what they may look like, and pick and choose their potential new facial features on wall-to-wall screens. This mirrors the ways that TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat filters are being used as inspiration photos for clients to show plastic surgeons what face they would like. As filters are getting more and more realistic, it is even easier for us to see what our face might look like with a few "tweakments."⁴ And these filters are also having an effect on people’s self-esteem in what has been termed "Snapchat dysphoria"—a form of body dysmorphia triggered by these filters.⁵

Whilst the delivery may be a bit clunky, "Uglies" ultimately shows us, however inadvertently, how impossible it is to live up to the beauty ideal.