In 1993, Michael Jackson told Oprah Winfrey he could count the number of surgeries he's had "on two fingers"
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NEED TO KNOW
- Michael Jackson admitted to three cosmetic surgeries but denied rumors of additional procedures throughout his life
- He attributed his changing skin tone to vitiligo, a condition later confirmed in his autopsy report
- His report also revealed cosmetic surgery scars and tattoos he used to alter his appearance
Michael Jackson dealt with rumors and backlash about his appearance until his death in 2009.
Though the King of Pop acknowledged undergoing a handful of cosmetic procedures in his 1988 autobiography Moonwalk and again in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey, he consistently pushed back on claims that he had drastically altered his appearance — including long-standing accusations of skin bleaching.
Jackson claimed that he had vitiligo, a chronic disorder that results in loss of skin pigmentation, and that he used makeup to cover up blotchiness.
At the time, he also spoke candidly about how public scrutiny of his looks affected his self-image.
"I try not to look in the mirror," the "Thriller" singer told Winfrey in February 1993, per Oprah.com. "I'm never happy with what I see."
From his confirmed procedures to the rumors he denied, here's everything Michael Jackson has ever said about his plastic surgery.
Jackson admitted to getting two nose jobs
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In 1988, Jackson admitted to undergoing two nose jobs as well as a chin implant. "I've had my nose altered twice, and I recently added a cleft to my chin, but that is it," he wrote in Moonwalk. "Period.”
Though the singer didn't discuss his chin surgery with Winfrey, he did confirm he had a nose job in their 1993 interview.
In the 2026 biopic Michael, Jackson is seen receiving his first surgery years after his dad, Joe Jackson, referred to him as "Big Nose." Later in the movie, he's seen getting another.
He said he had much less plastic surgery than people thought
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Outside of the three surgeries, Jackson denied rumors that he had any additional work done — telling Winfrey that he could count the number of procedures he's had done "on two fingers."
"I have never had my cheekbones done, never had my eyes done, never had my lips done," the pop star said in 1993.
Jackson continued to maintain that he had undergone only two surgeries on his nose in the 2003 documentary Living with Michael Jackson, which he claimed were intended to help him breathe and hit high notes.
''Everybody in Hollywood gets plastic surgery,'' he told British journalist Martin Bashir. ''Plastic surgery was not invented for Michael Jackson.''
Jackson denied the rumors that he bleached his skin
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From the 1980s into the 1990s, Jackson's skin tone appeared to grow progressively lighter.
"He kept getting whiter and whiter and whiter, and nobody understood why," Winfrey recalled in 2009 of her time interviewing the singer, per Oprah.com. "When you are up close to him — he had absolutely no pigmentation in his skin … You're looking at a person who is almost translucent."
During their 1993 sit-down, Jackson denied rumors that he had been bleaching his skin and claimed that vitiligo was the reason for its lightening.
"It is something I cannot help," he explained. "When people make up stories that I don't want to be who I am, it hurts me."
The singer's autopsy report confirmed that he had the chronic disorder, which caused white patches on his chest, abdomen, face and arms, per Reuters.
His son, Prince Jackson, said during an August 2023 appearance on Hotboxin' with Mike Tyson that his dad "had a lot of insecurity" about his skin color.
"I think the cause of it is up for speculation, but it's either vitiligo or some form of lupus contributed to the vitiligo," he said.
Prince continued, "He had a lot of insecurity around, kind of looking blotchy in his appearance. So he wanted to see if he could smooth out his appearance, to help with his security on his physical appearance.”
His autopsy report revealed multiple surgical scars
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Though Jackson only ever admitted to three surgeries, his autopsy report revealed that he had cosmetic surgery scars behind his nostrils and ears.
The New York Times reported that the singer also had tattoos on his scalp to mask his receding hairline, tattoos on his eyebrows and a pink tattoo around his lips.
Scars were also present on Jackson's neck, stomach, arms and wrist, but it's unclear whether or not they were from cosmetic procedures.
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