Denise Richards reveals how ex-husband inspired facelift reveal

Edward Segarra, USA TODAYWed, October 14, 2026 at 8:54 PM UTC

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Denise Richards, who revealed her 2025 facelift earlier this year, opened up about the decision in a new interview with Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg.

For Denise Richards, beauty secrets are meant to be shared.

The actress and "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" alum, who revealed her 2025 facelift earlier this year, opened up about her decision to go public with the cosmetic surgery during an appearance on "The Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg Show," released Tuesday, Oct. 13.

"In the '90s, when I got my [breast] implants, we didn't have social media, and I feel that a lot of us were much more private," Richards, 55, told host Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg. "And so, I was actually surprised how open a lot of people were."

In a March interview with Allure, Richards said she underwent the procedure in July 2025 because she "wanted to put things back up, where they were before." While Richards got a breast augmentation in her late teens, and then later had a revision surgery, this was her first major cosmetic operation for her face.

At the time, Richards described the effects of the facelift as "night and day," telling the magazine, "It's shocking, actually."

Denise Richards appearance: Actress reveals 'night and day' transformation from facelift

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Looking back on the revelation, Richards told McCarthy-Wahlberg that her announcement was largely inspired by her estranged husband, Aaron Phypers. The "Wild Things" actress previously shared that Phypers "disclosed" that she'd had a facelift. She alleged that her ex, who filed for divorce in July 2025, "had a photographer show up outside an appointment where I had some microneedling on my scars," adding that Phypers told someone that her cosmetic work was "botched."

"He said something in court about it on purpose," Richards said on "The Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg Show." "And I was so pleasantly surprised because there was media in there that didn't print it, which was nice. But I figured, you know what, I think I just need to be honest. And I didn't want to give him that power and have to say it then."

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Despite the drama leading up to her plastic surgery confession, Richards stands by her decision to lay it all out there.

"I'm so glad that I've been open about it," Richards said. "I didn't know how people would react, but I think I want to know what everyone's doing. What's peptides, what's this, what's that. ... And plus, I feel [my plastic surgeon] did such a great job on me that I wanted to share the information."

Contributing: Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Denise Richards reveals how ex-husband inspired facelift reveal

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