Million-Dollar Smiles

by Heather Widdows and Jessica Sutherland, University of Warwick

With the Telegraph proclaiming that “British teeth are back” and the New York Times celebrating “the novelty of natural teeth”, you may be forgiven for thinking that our obsession with the straightness of our smiles was waning.[1][2] But the recent furor around White Lotus and Sex Education star Aimee Lou Wood’s natural smile suggests we are more obsessed than ever. Hailed as “radical”, the tone of the coverage is not of celebration of difference but of bravery for standing out and not conforming to the beauty ideal.[3] Wood even admits that she feels “rebellious” for not opting for veneers, As Nikki Peach laments in Grazia, “Sure, in the current landscape of homogenous, unattainable beauty norms, Wood is challenging the status quo and moving the needle by having her natural teeth on screen. But wouldn’t it be great if they were just normal?”. [4]

The pearly whites of a veneered smile are now so normalised on screen that to see anyone without extensive dental work is a novelty. The obsession with perfect teeth has trickled down from movie and TV stars into the everyday. A 2023 study found that over three quarters of British orthodontists surveyed reported an increase in adult patients seeking tooth straightening treatments, with 65% seeing the rise of online working, and 38% seeing the influence of celebrities and influencers, as factors in this.[5] In fact, one of us is currently wearing an aligner, in search of that perfect smile. There has also been an increase in so-called ‘Turkey teeth’, with people travelling for cheaper veneers and implants.[6] Indeed, even though we know that cosmetic dentistry is cosmetic – the clue is in the name – we often don’t treat it as cosmetic. Instead of thinking that whitening and straightening teeth is an adornment practice, required to meet unrealistic beauty standards, we think white, straight teeth are simply required. It's treated as a health or hygiene practice, not a beauty practice.

If you don’t have a white, straight smile, you are failing to meet the grade, failing to be good enough, failing to be normal, as these #EverydayLookism stories show:

Stories from the #EverydayLookism Campaign

Source: Everyday Lookism Campaign

It’s not just actresses and models who are expected to have perfect teeth. As the quotes above show, the pressure to have perfect teeth is all around us. Wood is now be being praised for her non-conforming (read, unaltered) smile, but she wasn’t always, and she has admitted to being bullied as a child.[7] In addition, Wood conforms to the beauty ideal in every other way. She is thin, firm, smooth, young, and obviously beautiful. To have a slight quirk reinforces rather than challenges the beauty ideal. As we’ve written before body positivity campaigns tend to reinforce rather than reject the beauty ideal. Likewise, models with gaps in their teeth, are ‘quirky’ and memorable.[8] The slight imperfection, enhancing the otherwise perfect features. Similarly, Marilyn Monroe and Cindy Crawford had moles or ‘beauty spots’; tiny imperfections highlight perfection. Had they been covered in moles, they would not have been termed ‘beauty spots’ or seen as enhancing. Were Wood’s teeth yellow, missing or randomly crooked, they would be seen to mar rather than enhance. Only because these are minor blemishes, on otherwise near perfect faces and bodies, are these imperfections welcomed. This is not a normalising of natural teeth, or a widening of the beauty ideal. Minor, cute and quirky imperfections don’t challenge the power or pull of perfection; they strengthen it.

Well done to Wood for taking about her teeth, and for talking about the bullying she received as a child. We have no doubt that this was deeply hurtful, as it is for the very many children who are bullied for their appearance — appearance bullying is the most prevalent form of bullying.[9] But it is far too soon to think that we’ve normalised ‘natural’ teeth.

If you’d like to join the kick back against lookism, please share your story with the #EverydayLookism campaign. We have written previously about how toning down the critique won’t instantly solve anything, but it is a great first step. By understanding the power of words and stopping lookist talk, we might begin to reduce the pressure to be perfect.