Why Do We Care So Much When Someone Changes Their Hair?

Like many people I am always on the lookout for a new show to watch and get into. After asking some friends for suggestions I was recommended the show V, a remake on the 1980’s serial about aliens infiltrating earth. Wanting to catch up before the show returned I started watching the first episodes on-line. As I watched the show I discovered that several actors from past sci-fi and fantasy shows were cast as regulars on the show. One nice surprise was seeing that the head alien Anna was played by Firefly cast member Morena Baccarin. Although I must admit it took me a minute to recognize her, for while on Firefly she had long wavy hair on V her hair has been cut into a short pixyish style.

After watching the first four episodes I visited various message boards to see what others had to say about the show. And interestingly most posts about Morena Baccarin focused on her hairstyle instead of her acting ability. Her performance on the show is reflected on only a little. But her choice in hairstyle causes everyone to post their opinion.

It’s not that surprising when you think about it. Our society is very fixated when it comes to hair. May it be finding the right style to maximize one’s appearance, spending tons of money on hair coloring and hair care products, or finding the right solution to regain confidence when one loses their hair. People are even going the other route and are embracing a no hair look, either by excepting their own hair lose or willing shaving their head and choosing to go bald. I’ll admit I’m not immune to this obsession with hair, as I’m bitter at already begining to lose my hair in my twenties. So it’s not surprising for people to focus so heavily on an actor’s hair.

There have been many instances on people focusing heavily on the hair style of performers. When the movie V for Vendetta came out people’s main focus wasn’t if the movie would remain true to the Alan Moore comic, but on the fact that Natalie Portman had shaved her head for her role in the movie. And when the ratings for the show Felicity fell during the second season people blamed it on lead actress Keri Russell’s change in hair style, rather then on the show’s move from Tuesday nights to Sunday nights. The second reason seems like the more realistic one, for if the show’s success hinged entirely on the hair of its lead character then it really reveals the shallowness of its audience. If an actress changing their hairstyle is a ratings disaster, then why did the ratings for Buffy the Vampire Slayer go up during the second season when Sarah Michelle Gellar started the season with a new shoulder length do?

And it’s not just women who face this hair scrutiny. It affects men also. When Daniel Craig was cast as the new James Bond people complained left and right at the thought of a blond haired Bond. When Brad Pitt shaved his head for the movie Fight Club several news stories focused on his new look. So it’s not just women performers who fall under this obsession with hair, but men also.

I’ve recently given some thought as to why people are particularly focused on the hair style of celebrates. And I have come to believe that it goes deeper then a simple preference for one hair style over another. I think it has to do with people’s initial recognition with a performer. That just as we tend to associate an actor and actress with the first role we saw them play, we also freeze them in our mind’s eye with the look they had during that initial performance. And when they take on a new role and change their look for the role we feel uncomfortable with this change since it differs with how we originally saw them. Often it takes a bit of time for us to get used to their new look. Even when we end up preferring their new look over the old one we often still remember how they looked in the first role we saw them in. Like baby ducks imprinting onto the first thing they see people seem to imprint onto the initial appearance they first see on an actor or actress. And since a performer’s hair style frequently changes from role to role we find ourselves at unease when their appearance differs from how we first saw them.

This also affects people we know in real life in addition to performers. Often when someone we know changes their hair style we find ourselves debating which look is better. And often we find we preferred the hair style they had when we first met them. Not always, but often.

Hopefully I’ve given you something to think about the next time you find yourself mulling over the hair style of others. For while hair is at the top of a person, its roots seem to run deeply throughout us.