10 Celebrities Who Once Wore Braces
Red carpet smiles were not always red carpet ready. Long before flashing perfect grins at premieres, plenty of celebrities had metal brackets and wires doing the hard work.
Big-name actors and chart-topping musicians have had braces as part of their smile journey. Turns out, even Hollywood had an awkward phase – and survived it.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for general informational and entertainment purposes. Details about orthodontic treatment are based on publicly available reporting and public photographs, and availability of specific images or claims can change as new information emerges.
10. Tom Cruise
When you’re one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, you’d think your smile would be perfect from the start.
Tom Cruise surprised everyone by getting ceramic braces around age 40, during the early 2000s, choosing a discreet option that wouldn’t interfere with his blockbuster career. The Mission Impossible star wore them proudly while continuing to film action-packed movies.
His decision showed millions of fans that it’s never too late to invest in your smile. Seeing a superstar show up for orthodontic care made the idea feel a lot more normal.
9. Gwen Stefani
Turning orthodontic treatment into a fashion statement takes serious confidence. At age 30, the No Doubt frontwoman decided metal braces were the perfect accessory for her punk-rock style.
She rocked those brackets like they were part of her stage costume.
Gwen never hid her braces from cameras or fans, instead embracing them as another way to express her unique personality. Her bold choice made braces look cool rather than awkward, especially for adults wondering if they were too old for treatment.
8. FKA Twigs
Creative expression shows up in unexpected ways, and for this experimental musician, braces became part of the journey. FKA twigs approached orthodontic treatment with the same fearless energy she brings to her music videos and performances.
Distinct personal style turned even dental hardware into something that looked deliberately artistic.
Fans responded warmly to that openness throughout the process.
On stage and online, she kept the same creative energy while her smile changed over time.
7. Niall Horan
Niall Horan made braces part of his early One Direction era, and he turned the final step into a small milestone moment.
In early April 2013, he shared that he had his braces removed and posted a simple before-and-after look at the change.
Rather than treating it like something to hide, he treated it like progress, which landed well with fans who were going through the same routine appointments. That easy honesty helped braces feel less like a big deal and more like a normal upgrade.
6. Dakota Fanning
Growing up in the spotlight means every awkward phase gets documented.
Dakota Fanning wore braces during her transition from child star to young adult actress, handling the experience with remarkable grace. Photographers captured her at red carpet events with her orthodontic hardware visible, but she smiled confidently anyway.
Her willingness to be photographed with braces helped countless teenagers feel less self-conscious about their own dental journeys.
5. Cindy Crawford
Flawless smiles might seem like a given for supermodels.
As a teenager, Cindy Crawford wore braces to correct an overbite and crooked teeth that could have limited her modeling opportunities.
Those early years of orthodontic treatment helped shape one of the most recognizable smiles in fashion history. Her signature grin went on to become a defining feature of an entire era in modeling.
Without that dental work, the look of the runway world might have turned out very differently.
4. Gwyneth Paltrow
Academy Award winners aren’t exempt from dental work either.
Gwyneth Paltrow’s path to her camera-ready smile included time with orthodontic treatment during her younger years.
She’s since become known for her attention to health and wellness, and her straight teeth certainly fit that polished image. The Shakespeare in Love star proves that investing in your smile early pays dividends throughout your career, especially when close-ups are part of your daily job requirements.
3. Prince William
A brief flash of wire in 2009 photos sparked curiosity, and the explanation was straightforward.
A spokesman confirmed Prince William had a permanent support behind his lower teeth, fitted years earlier after orthodontic treatment, and it was designed to keep teeth from shifting back.
It is the kind of detail that usually stays private, but it ended up quietly proving that long-term maintenance can matter even for people who live in front of cameras.
Nothing dramatic, just a practical reminder that smiles often come with upkeep.
2. Kendall Jenner
A throwback red carpet photo caught people off guard for a simple reason: braces were right there in the frame.
Teen Vogue’s look back at the Kardashian-Jenner family’s first collective red carpet appearance in 2008 specifically points out Kendall Jenner wearing braces at the time.
Years later, after countless runway moments and close-up beauty shots, that early snapshot still lands because it feels so ordinary. Braces did their job, time did the rest, and the glow-up story wrote itself.
1. Emma Watson
Early in her career, Emma Watson had moments that felt like any teenager’s routine, even with a major franchise on her schedule.
Teen-mag behind-the-scenes coverage from the mid-2000s noted she had come straight from the orthodontist and kept her smile more guarded because braces were involved. That small detail has stuck because it undercuts the idea that “camera-ready” is automatic.
A polished smile is often built quietly over time, and that includes the same orthodontic steps many people recognize.
