Julia Roberts Makeup Ads Banned in UK for Too Much Photoshop

Advertising Standards Authority, the ad industry watchdog in the UK, has banned an overly-retouched advertisement by Lancome featuring Julia Roberts for being misleading, stating that the flawless skin seen in the photo was too good to be true. The Authority is demanding that the company pull a two-page magazine ad Roberts did for Lancome, one of L’Oreal’s makeup brands.

Parliament member Jo Swinson first brought the ads to the authority’s attention, and later told the BBC, “This ruling demonstrates that the advertising regulator is acknowledging the dishonest and misleading nature of excessive retouching. Pictures of flawless skin and super-slim bodies are all around, but they don’t reflect reality.”

The spread, shot by Mario Testino, shows 43-year-old Roberts glowing and fresh-faced, the result of having used Lancome’s Teint Miracle foundation. The ad claims the foundation “recreates the aura of perfect skin.”

L’Oreal admitted to using “post-production techniques” to create the ad, but added that the foundation was the result of 10 years worth of research. petapixel.com, nydailynews.com