Tennis legend Serena Williams recently revealed the latest designs for her new collaboration with Nike.
Unbeknownst to her, the Instagram post she made on Saturday, Sept. 21, announcing the launch, made space for some to criticize her looks, going as far as saying she had plastic surgery or is bleaching her skin.
The mother of two is featured in the launch photos from the Serena Williams Design Crew, sporting one of the designs, a red, pink, and white athletic-leisure short set with a matching jacket. Her signature blond hair is in a half-up/half-down style ponytail.
The second collection of the SWDC since 2019 celebrates the diversity of women and women athletes, as Williams shows in one of the photos as several powerful women surround her, including Dawn Staley, head coach of the University of South Carolina women’s basketball team.
Throughout the sea of congratulations for the SWDC and typical love and admiration for Williams, some people were there to reignite the debate about whether she has altered her looks.
One commenter said, “Serena, you are beautiful, don’t ruin it. Do not bleach.” Another stated, “Can she get any lighter?”
This is not the first time accusations and statements like these have popped up in Williams’ comment sections.
In July, the retired tennis champion was a guest on the popular talk show “Hot Ones,” and after sharing a clip of her appearance, the real hot topic was the alleged change to her facial features.
One person asked, “What did she do to her face, and why?” while another stated, “Her face looks very different.”
Some alluded that the seven-time Wimbledon winner had been getting overzealous with Botox and lip fillers, though she has never admitted to those accusations. As another stated, the melanin seemed a bit off. “Who is this white lady? I came to see Serena,” they said.
Willams’ skin tone was under review earlier this summer when social media trolls tried to insinuate that he was skin bleaching after she released a series of videos looking a little lighter than usual.
In several clips from June, capturing behind-the-scenes footage of her preparing for the Vogue World Show during Paris Fashion Week. Willams was sporting long, blond, straight hair and makeup that didn’t do her beautiful brown skin justice under the Parisian lights.
The comments on the clips ranged from directly commenting on her lighter complexion and blond hair to stating that Williams looked unlike herself — “This woman looks totally different.”
Serena's looks at the Paris fashion week✨ pic.twitter.com/rESgvVcaYA
— Serena's snatched wig (@Danidilo2) June 27, 2024
Several fans came to her defense in the videos’ comments, attributing her look to the lighting, makeup techniques or application, or simply aging.
Williams has rarely addressed negative comments regarding her body, facial structure, or skin complexion. Since the beginning of her tennis career, she has been scrutinized for not being what some considered society’s standard of beauty, but that has not stopped her.
In a previous interview with Time, she spoke about defying the norms and not conforming to society’s perception of beauty.
“You don’t let the world decide beauty. And me being thicker or whatever, I mean, curves are popular now. Butts are popular. I’m trying to lose mine, and people are trying to get mine,” Williams stated in 2022.
“A lot of people feel they’re not pretty or they’re not cute enough because their skin is dark. I think people could feel my confidence because I was always told, ‘You look great. Be Black and be proud,'” she added.
Regardless of critics who constantly have something to say about her looks, Williams fans from the 1990s to now will stand 10 toes down behind her.
One person said, “So perfect and yes I said that because I mean look at you and who you are inside don’t stop because that fire inside ooof it’s all you!!!”
Another added, “Serena will remain that Girl everything suits you.”
