Reese Witherspoon's InStyle Cover Photo Criticized; Editor-In-Chief Responds To Backlash

Reese Witherspoon is gracing InStyle's cover for the December/January 2022 issue, but many netizens were not happy with her appearance on the cover after seeing it.

InStyle shared Witherspoon's cover photo for the magazine on Instagram Monday. The photo featured Witherspoon sitting with one hand on her hip. She is wearing a black dress with her signature blonde hair and blue eyes.

"Having made the leap from actress to mogul, #ReeseWitherspoon knows true success means bringing all her ladies with her," the caption read.

Several Instagram users immediately reacted to InStyle's post, with many asking the magazine if the "Morning Show" actress approved of her picture on the cover because, for them, it was heavily edited. Many said the "Cruel Intentions" star looked so different that they couldn't recognize her anymore.

"Did she approve this edit? This does not look like her," one commented.

"Come on, as if she needed any retouching! Just take a beautiful picture!" another added.

"She doesn’t look like herself AT ALL. Such empowerment. Much airbrush," a third user wrote with face with tears of joy emoji.

Many also expressed their dismay at the allegedly edited photo. They said the "Legally Blonde" star is already very beautiful, and her cover doesn't need to be altered.

"Unrecognizable. What did you do to this gorgeous woman," a fan commented with a crying face emoji.

"Honestly, it's painful to see. She's a gorgeous girl. Leave her face alone. It's harmful — and sends the wrong message," a fifth user opined.

Following the intense backlash, InStyle editor-in-chief Laura Brown took to the comments section to defend the magazine cover.

"Hey team, for those commenting on retouching, the brief was super sexy, a heavy eye and big hair. You rarely see Reese like this — which was the point," she wrote in the screenshot obtained by MSN. "We are not in the business of embalming women at @InStylemagazine."

However, her response received more reactions from the netizens, who were not convinced that Witherspoon's look was solely due to her hair and makeup.

"It doesn’t look like her… not because of the hair and makeup," one wrote.

Another agreed and said Witherspoon looked 20 years younger on the cover and "literally looks like her daughter."

"Telling your followers it’s the makeup/hair/clothes is just insulting their intelligence," the netizen added.