Did Jenna Ortega Shave Her Eyebrows? What Really Happened With Her New Look

If you scrolling through TikTok or Instagram recently and did a double-take at a photo of Jenna Ortega, you aren't alone. One minute she’s the sharp-browed, deadpan queen of Nevermore Academy, and the next, her face looks… different. Alien-esque. High fashion. Bare. It immediately sparked a firestorm of "Wait, did Jenna Ortega shave her eyebrows?" theories across every corner of the internet.

Let's cut to the chase: No, she didn't take a razor to them.

She bleached them. There is a massive difference between the two, even if the visual shock is roughly the same. Shaving is a commitment to months of awkward regrowth; bleaching is a temporary, high-impact style choice that allows an actor to morph into a character or a high-fashion concept without losing their natural brow shape forever.

The Viral Moment: Why Everyone Thinks Jenna Ortega Shaved Her Eyebrows

The confusion started peaking during the 2025 press cycle. Jenna appeared at CinemaCon in Las Vegas looking almost unrecognizable. She traded her signature dark, structured arches for a "brow-less" look that made her dark eyes pop in a way we hadn't seen before. Social media went into a full meltdown.

One fan on Instagram summed it up perfectly: "For a second I thought she shaved her eyebrows."

Honestly, it’s an easy mistake to make. When you have hair as dark as Jenna's, bleaching them to a pale blonde makes them virtually disappear against the skin, especially under the harsh, bright lights of a red carpet or in high-contrast editorial photography.

It Started With The Cut and CinemaCon

The transformation wasn't a one-off accident. Jenna debuted the look on the cover of The Cut in April 2025, paired with avant-garde fashion from labels like Schiaparelli and Prada. It was a vibe. It was moody, '70s-inspired, and very much in line with her "Scream Queen" persona. But the real "did she or didn't she" debate ignited when she showed up at CinemaCon to promote her upcoming film Hurry Up Tomorrow, starring alongside Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye and Barry Keoghan.

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By the time she hit the red carpet for the Wednesday Season 2 press events later in the year, the bleached brow had become her "thing" for 2025.

Why Do Celebs Keep Bleaching Their Brows Anyway?

You’ve probably seen this before. It’s a classic move. Everyone from Kim Kardashian and Kendall Jenner to Zendaya and Doja Cat has done the "disappearing brow" trick.

For Jenna, it’s about breaking away from the rigid aesthetic of her most famous characters. We are so used to seeing her as Wednesday Addams—pale skin, dark braids, and very prominent, dark brows—that any change to that specific geometry feels like a glitch in the matrix.

Bleaching the brows does three specific things:

• It opens up the eye area, providing a blank canvas for makeup artists.
• It creates an "editorial" or "high-fashion" look that feels more mature and experimental.
• It signals a transition between projects.

In Jenna's case, it seems to be tied to her role as Anima in Hurry Up Tomorrow. The film is described as a "musical psychological thriller" and a "metathriller." If you're playing a character that is supposed to feel raw or unhinged, losing the eyebrows is the fastest way to look "uncanny."

Shaving vs. Bleaching: The Science of the "Invisible" Brow

If you're sitting at home thinking about trying this because Jenna made it look cool, please listen: do not grab the Bic.

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Shaving your eyebrows is risky. Not because they "won't grow back"—that's mostly a myth—but because they grow back as stubble. It’s itchy. It’s prickly. And unless you’re a professional makeup artist, it’s incredibly hard to draw them back on realistically every single morning.

Bleaching, or "lifting" the color, involves using a peroxide-based cream to strip the pigment. For someone like Jenna, who has deep brunette hair, this is usually a two-step process to ensure they don't turn a weird, brassy orange.

How the Pros Hide Brows Without Bleach

Sometimes, what looks like a shave or a bleach is actually just a lot of glue. Makeup artists use a technique called "blocking."

1. They slick the brows down with a disappearing purple glue stick (the kind you used in elementary school).
2. They comb them flat.
3. They layer heavy-duty concealer and powder over the top.

This is likely what Jenna does for some photo shoots where she needs to go back to her natural look the next day. But for the 2025 press tour, multiple sources and her own Instagram selfies confirmed she went for the actual bleach.

The Evolution of the "Goth-Girl" Aesthetic

Jenna has become the face of "Goth Glam" for Gen Z. She’s leaning into it, too. Whether it’s wearing a sheer red Dior dress to the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice premiere or rocking the bleached brows with a dark smoky eye, she’s following a long lineage of "alternative" icons.

Think back to Rooney Mara in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. That look changed the game in 2011. Jenna is essentially doing the 2025 version of that—blending high fashion with a hint of the macabre.

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Interestingly, while some fans hated the look, claiming it "aged her" or made her look "scary," the fashion world ate it up. It’s a power move. It says, "I don't need to look conventionally pretty to be the most interesting person in the room."

What’s Next for Jenna’s Look?

Now that the Wednesday Season 2 hype is reaching a fever pitch, we’re seeing Jenna return to her darker roots. The bleached brows were a season of experimentation, likely tied to her "break" between filming major franchises.

She hasn't just been busy with Wednesday. She’s also starring in A24’s Death of a Unicorn with Paul Rudd. Between the musical thriller with The Weeknd and the unicorn-themed dark comedy, she is clearly in her "experimental" era.

If you’re wondering if you should follow suit, maybe try the "faux" version first. You can use a high-coverage matte concealer and a spoolie brush to coat your brow hairs and see how you look without them. It's a trip. Your forehead will look massive. Your eyes will look huge. You might love it, or you might realize you really miss your eyebrows.

Actionable Insights for the "Brow-Less" Curious:

• Don't Shave: Seriously. Just don't. The regrowth is a nightmare of ingrown hairs and uneven patches.
• Go to a Pro: If you want to bleach, see a professional. Bleach near your eyes is a recipe for a trip to the ER if you aren't careful.
• Test the Look: Use a heavy-duty concealer (like Tarte Shape Tape or Dermablend) to "erase" your brows for a night out before committing to the chemical process.
• Consider the Upkeep: Bleached brows on dark hair show roots within a week. It is a high-maintenance lifestyle.

Jenna Ortega didn't shave her eyebrows, but she did prove that she's willing to take risks. Whether you're a fan of the "alien-chic" look or you're counting down the days until she's back to her signature dark arches, you have to admit—she knows how to keep everyone talking.