iPhone Face, Explained: What It Means & Why It Happens

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Do some people (read: actors) really look more modern than others?

Co-authored by Ellen Turner and Bertha Isabel Crombet, PhD

Last Updated: October 2, 2025 Fact Checked

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What is an iPhone face?

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Causes

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Examples

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What is reverse iPhone face?

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Video

Period dramas like Little Women, Emma, and Persuasion are quite popular for their cinematic portrayals of glamorous aesthetics from times long past. However, the believability of the actors’ performances in these films has come into question due to a recently coined phenomenon known as “iPhone face.” But what does this term actually mean? And do modern faces truly look much different than those in past centuries? Keep reading if you’re curious to learn more about “iPhone face,” including notable celebrity examples.

iPhone Face Meaning

"iPhone face" is used to describe people who have distinctly modern features, including actors who seem unrealistic in a period piece. This may be a result of popular cosmetic procedures, like Botox and veneers. Examples of actors who are widely agreed upon as having an iPhone face include Zac Efron and Sydney Sweeney.

Section 1 of 4:

What is an iPhone face?

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An ‘iPhone face’ describes someone with unmistakably modern features. The term “iPhone face” refers to people who have a distinctly modern appearance, alluding to the fact that they’ve seen an iPhone or know what an iPhone is. The term first emerged as “smartphone face” on X in 2023, when one user commented on how the cast of Daisy Jones & the Six didn’t at all look like they were from the 1970s, adding that they all had a “terminal” case of “I know what smartphones are” face. The term evolved to be the more specific “iPhone face” shortly thereafter.^{[1]
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- Key characteristics of iPhone face: Symmetrical features, smooth skin, high cheekbones, perfect teeth, and an overall polished appearance.
- “iPhone Face” continues to be used to describe certain actors in period films and TV shows who were thought to look too modern to deliver believable performances in their respective time periods.
- For example, some people have pointed to actors like Henry Cavill and Jonathan Rhys Meyers in The Tudors (2007-2010) as having iPhone face. Despite the fact that both actors are playing 16th-century Englishmen, something about their faces seems unmistakably modern.
- Telling someone they have iPhone face isn't particularly offensive, but it may not be taken as a compliment, so tread carefully.

Section 2 of 4:

What causes iPhone Face?

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iPhone face is most likely a result of cosmetic procedures becoming popular. Although it may seem like 21st-century faces are radically different from those of our ancestors, that’s probably not the case. Instead, factors like diet, fashion, grooming, and the growing rise in cosmetic procedures are most likely to blame for “iPhone face.”^{[2]
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Research source} Other cosmetic procedures, like Botox injections, can also affect the balance, texture, and volume of the face, creating a symmetry that was not possible for people in earlier centuries.
- Cosmetic dentistry may be behind many instances of iPhone face, including the cast of Daisy Jones & The Six. It’s unlikely that everyone in a band in the 1970s would have perfectly straight and white teeth.
- Plus, in just the last decade, what’s considered “beautiful” has become more homogenous. Homogenous features like filled lips, veneers, and Botox’d foreheads have become the norm.

Section 3 of 4:

iPhone Face Examples

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Celebrities with iPhone face include Sydney Sweeney and Lily-Rose Depp. The term “iPhone face” initially surfaced after fans complained about the casting of Timothée Chalamet and Lily-Rose Depp in the 2019 film, The King. Chalamet plays King Henry V and Depp plays Catherine of France, who later becomes Queen of England. The film takes place in the 15th century, and audiences felt they could not suspend their disbelief enough in terms of casting, claiming that both Chalamet and Depp had discernibly modern looks that clearly seemed out of place in medieval England. Here are some more examples of actors with iPhone face:^{[3]
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- Dakota Johnson
- Sydney Sweeney
- Sam Claflin
- Michael B. Jordan
- Zendaya
- Cameron Diaz
- Margot Robbie
- Jenna Coleman
- Nicole Kidman

Section 4 of 4:

What is reverse iPhone face?

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’Reverse iPhone face’ refers to faces that fit in with earlier time periods. The reverse iPhone face refers to 21st-century folk who have certain facial features associated with people who lived in earlier times. Some members of the cast of Stranger Things, for example, are cited as having reverse iPhone faces. In a 2023 tweet, user @kendallhosseini spoke on Charlie Heaton and Natalie Dyer’s appearance, stating that they both had “reverse iPhone face,” and adding that they look like they “exclusively get their news from an unwashed child yelling 'extra extra’ on a corner of the street.”^{[4]
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- Bella Ramsey is another popular example of a reverse iPhone face, as many fans agree that there is an old-timey quality to the actor’s facial features.
- A happy medium exists between iPhone face and reverse iPhone face, which is a timeless face. Actors like Keira Knightley and Florence Pugh are considered to have timeless faces, making them excellent casting choices for just about any project.