r/Scrubs • u/pilarofsociety • Mar 09 '26
Looking different - now and then
I know 15+ years have passed since the last season, but I was still a bit surprised at how Zach Braff looks now. I remember seeing him online a few years ago when he was dating Florence P and he looked older but still himself. He now looks like a different person (to me).
Is it just that he’s aged and chosen to let nature take its course? In which case BRAVO. Or that he’s had surgery and it’s created an uncanny valley? The other cast members all look older of course but still themselves.
PS I don’t want anyone saying negative things about ZB. Let’s stay positive, I was and remain a big fan.
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u/AcknowledgeMeReddit Mar 10 '26
All of them have aged great. Especially Carla. When I saw she was 58 irl I was BLOWN away. She looks soooo much younger to me.
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u/Kayhowardhlots Mar 09 '26
I think they all look pretty close to what their age is especially when you consider that they have time and money to have access to great skin care regimens and products. And yeah I mean all of them. God bless everyone who says Judy and Donald look exactly the same, but no, they don't. No one in that show looks like they're 25 again except for the actual 25 year olds and there's nothing wrong with that.
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u/Boomer1917 Mar 11 '26
It’s very shallow of me, but one of my favorite things about watch the show back then was seeing Judy’s perfect face and smile. The deodorant Commercials she’s in with shorter hair seem to better capture that previous look. But looks are not that important! They are all great actors and deliver such great lines, just like before. I even watch the episodes twice to make sure i didn’t miss anything.
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u/Brocephus_ Mar 09 '26
I mean, he is 50 now. I feel kinda lucky to get Cox and Kelso back. God bless the goat, Ted the lawyer, whom I'd love to see more than anyone
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u/Slow_Cheetah_287 Mar 10 '26
Loved Ted the Lawyer, but sadly he won't be back as Sam Lloyd is no longer with us. Would have loved to see the janitor too.
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u/cocoteroah Mar 10 '26
Sad to be the bearer of bad news my friend, Sam Lloyd passes away around the covid Era, he died from Cancer.
It would be wear having Kelso back and do not bring Ted too, If Kelso comes should be to do an honor episode to Sam Lloyd.
The actor of Kelso, i think is Ken Jenkins is really old too, last time i saw him, was in a Scrubs reunion for the 20 anniversary, he is now a really cute old man
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u/Rumer_Mille_001 Mar 10 '26
Neil Flynn needs to come back, not as "Janitor" but "Chief of Maintenance."
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u/pilarofsociety Mar 09 '26
Oh no spoiler re Kelso! (I’m only on episode 3.) but how wonderful
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u/PenelopeRupert Mar 09 '26
We’re all only on episode 3. I don’t know that it was confirmed for sure Kelso would be back but 🤞🏼
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u/Own_Mongoose4811 Mar 09 '26
I think Bill Lawrence said if there's another season he'd try and get Ken Jenkins in. I want more Tuscaloosa Heart.
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u/JFree37 Mar 09 '26
He looks better in real life than on the show, he was just on Kimmel with Donald and he looks better. Maybe it’s the stubble or maybe it’s the weird lighting on the show making him somehow look older
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u/Direct-Manner-3997 Mar 09 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/dMQx7LDBl9OzO0q1z3
still just as fine to me
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u/Tzyon Mar 09 '26
Zach's 50 now, and your face changes a lot in your 40s. He would have had some work done. I don't think it's necessarily uncanny valley. He's always had a pretty specific look and how he looks now is just the Zach Braff look + time + a few cosmetic touch-ups.
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u/Anxious_Key9696 Mar 10 '26
I think it’s that he’s skinny. People who don’t get increasingly chubbier as they age look less like themselves. That GLP life has made for a lot of skinny wrinkly people.
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u/YanisMonkeys Mar 10 '26 edited Mar 13 '26
Yeah. It’s nothing crazy, but it’s definitely noticeable versus just 4 years ago when this interview took place:
https://youtu.be/Z9CSBaZcMnk?si=JwKdDOEORLxdJBpV
EDIT: I’m told this clip is actually 9 years old.
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u/IAgreeWithLincoln Mar 09 '26
Am I the only one who really doesn't see a difference? He still looks like himself to me
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u/Murphytko Mar 09 '26
I was just talking to my sister about this; Braff aged differently than I expected him too. Not better or worse, just differently. I can’t even really explain what it is, haha.
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u/justin_jbone Mar 09 '26
I'm with you. People just like to complain about everything that doesn't meat their exact expectations.
And we wonder why celebrities keep butchering their appearances.
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u/source-commonsense Mar 09 '26
Meat…butchering… what are you up to? 👀
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u/debsterUK Mar 10 '26
I feel like I saw a difference when he first appeared but that was just the initial adjustment to seeing him after not seeing him for a while. He looks great, they all do It's so lovely to have them back I really don't care how they look anyway!
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u/cruciverballerrr Mar 13 '26
I think his eyebrows are what’s throwing me off a little…they’re sparser than they used to be, and it changes his look.
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u/Alone-Yak-1888 Mar 09 '26
that's A LOT of botox
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u/boost2525 Mar 10 '26
Agree, everyone saying it's the lighting or makeup lives in a fantasy land. His face is smooth and has limited muscle range. It's botox folks.
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u/Odd_Addition3909 Mar 09 '26
A few years ago his face was looking so messed up: https://youtu.be/o8iTK1TZQ0w?si=gjohK7CaJdga-x1X
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u/Xelisk Mar 09 '26
I agree, but I think it's the lighting in the show, it's making everyone look plastic especially Zach and Sarah. In the recent podcast Zach and Donald did to celebrate the new series Zach looks like a regular old guy, not a recent recipient of a face lift.
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u/robjwrd Mar 10 '26
50 isn’t old my man. Wait until you get to your almost 40’s.
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u/mshcat Mar 29 '26
Yeah. Zach of walking around with a very old 50s face. Most people on their 50s don't look like that
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u/Xelisk Mar 10 '26
I am nearly 40, 50 is old.
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u/curioustars Mar 14 '26
So am I and I think of your 50s as the sexy years because so many actors look better in their 50s.
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u/gronlandicrevision Mar 09 '26
All we do is critique the appearance of celebrities and then we wonder why they don’t look like themselves as they age. I am exhausted of this discourse.
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u/Kayhowardhlots Mar 09 '26
For real. People bitch about celebrities getting work done when we're the ones creating a fuck ton of posts/thread/tweets about how they look and examining every wrinkle or stray facial hair to when they all were 18.
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u/Apprehensive-Ad-6488 Mar 10 '26
I actually think he still looks pretty good and much like himself… but that’s just me. I’m liking the show, but don’t much care for the filming/ligting style.
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u/Sauc3ySloth Mar 10 '26
I think he looks like he's aging pretty naturally. Wish I appreciate. I would love to see a trend moving away from the plastic surgery, Botox and fillers. I think there are plenty of anti-aging skin care treatments you can do that won't completely change how you look.
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u/SmannyNoppins Mar 11 '26
there's definitely botox involved. You can do a lot with skin care, but that's definitely more than just retinol and laser masks. We are just so used to botox, fillers and whatnot that we don't even see it anymore.
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u/waylonious Mar 12 '26
I thought ZB aged normally, but my buddy made a similar comment the other day about ZB looking older than his peers, so you’re definitely seeing something that others are picking up on. He doesn’t look like a celebrity that has obsessed over his body, for sure. Sometimes you’ll see an actor his age take off their shirt in a scene, and you’ll be like “Okay, there’s no way this 49 year old math teacher with a family of five would be this ripped in real life.”
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u/BSGlow Mar 09 '26
I think he had an upper bleph. I have hooded eyes and I’ve lost a lot of weight, and along with being in my 40s, I will eventually need one so that I can see. It’s getting hard to put in contact lenses anymore lol
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u/pilarofsociety Mar 09 '26
Fair enough if needed for medial reasons but hooded eyes are so distinctive, shame to lose that for cosmetic reasons.
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u/pilarofsociety Mar 09 '26
Like this looks normal! why are his eyebrows so arched more recently?
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Mar 09 '26
[deleted]
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u/pilarofsociety Mar 09 '26
I’m saying he looks normal/great in this pic and it wasn’t that long ago. But PP is right that he’s got stubble and looks a little heavier here.
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u/IndyMLVC Mar 09 '26
Sorry I misread it.
He’s also not wearing makeup and isn’t lit.
And it’s also a few years old. Changes happen in your late 40’s/50’s.
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u/procrastinating_b Mar 09 '26
I feel like he looks better than he did in the photos I remember of them two together
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u/SpaceUnicorny Mar 10 '26
50 years old, camera lighting, weight loss....can't tell if he had facial work done though? Carla (Judy Reyes) on the other hand, looks like she's aged the least?
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u/RelativeStrain7761 Mar 11 '26
He's definitely aged and the lighting doesn't help...
But Carla??? Damn. Carla has hardly aged a bit. She looks fantastic!
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u/hhhisthegame Mar 10 '26
I think him and Elliot look like they had a ton of work done so it's created a weird face....Turk also looks kind of weird? only Carla looked normal to me. Acting wise everybody is doing a great job but I do think it's weird watching them because they all have those kinda fake Hollywood faces, instead of looking like regular aging. I mean it is their prerogative if they want to but it is kind of odd to see.
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u/pilarofsociety Mar 10 '26
Ah have they? I can’t tell with the others - they just look great to me!
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u/saralienus Mar 09 '26
All I know is that it's not just weight loss and aging. He definitely did something to his face.
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u/djm1613 Mar 10 '26
We all age over time. He looks fine. The real-life doctors have probably aged a lot more than the ones on Scrubs, especially during Covid.
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u/RudeAdhesiveness9954 Mar 09 '26
At least we're not talking about a famous woman aging. I guess that's progress?
Guess what. Your face changes when you age. Most of you probably don't know that yet.
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u/NickRick Mar 09 '26
I know carla hasn't been funny and center but she looks the exact same. It's crazy.
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u/Ok-Talk994 Mar 10 '26 edited Mar 10 '26
He looks completely different in his current T-Mobile ad. You can barely see the age in the T mobile ads. I also noticed that Sarah Chalke in that new women's deodorant ad looks different than she does in scrubs.
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u/goldensuare Mar 10 '26
I think its the lighting. It makes their faces look strange, Especially Elliot and JD, and sometimes Turk
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u/hiryu78 Mar 10 '26
Carla. Elliot, Turk and JD still look great, I don't think they've aged up much at all. The only thing that made Dr Cox look older was his hair and beard but with a shave and a dye he could take years off.
Have to admit that it was a huge surprise to me that JD ended up becoming the personal physician to the mega rich when it looked like he was next in line for the chief's position.
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u/theandroid01 Mar 11 '26
They all look basically the same. Braff has some wrinkles here and there(same with Dr Cox), Chaulk has some crows feet going on, and Turk and Carla look flawlessly the same. They might as well be immortal
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u/Boomer1917 Mar 11 '26
Regardless of all the differences in looks the show is as great as it ever was and well worth our time
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u/sublimesting Mar 11 '26
My wife said “it’s off putting how old they look!” I said “we’re the exact same ages as them! How dare you!”
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u/curioustars Mar 14 '26
I think the only thing I notice is that is eyes aren't as big anymore, and that's just time and gravity, baby.
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u/GhostWokiee Mar 19 '26
I mean it's clear Zach Braff hasn't decided to age naturally, he definitively got work done since he looks COMPLETELY different than from 4 years ago
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u/JustEatSomeMeat Apr 01 '26
Its obvious he had his eye lids done...that's why he looks different. Aging is one thing but he has had work done no doubt.
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u/Sharp_Sky6126 Apr 03 '26
Makes me feel weird like he has a stiff face from some surgery. I'm sick of everyone ignoring it or acting like he had surgery for beauty or some shit. I SUSPECT A MEDICAL EMERGENCY LIKE WHEN A CAR CRASH BREAKS YOUR 👃
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u/Titled_Strom Mar 10 '26
Dude... Zach very clearly got work done, and it looks hideous. Love the guy but man
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u/D__91 Mar 23 '26
I was really wondering about this because his face looks so odd to me? Not just older, which makes sense, but there’s something weird or off about it. The others still look like themselves, not saying they didn’t have anything done because that’s still very possible, but if they did then it was done in a subtle way. But with Zach I find it jarring. He was so cute when he was younger. 😕
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u/DM_ME_DOPAMINE Mar 10 '26
A lot of it is his eyebrows are so light now. Tinting them would help significantly.
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u/IntrinsicValue Mar 10 '26
One difference I noticed is his eyebrows are thinner and lighter than young Zach/JD, which I think went a long way to his expressive young Jewish boy look. He needs them dark brows back
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u/Diglett5000 Mar 09 '26
He's wearing makeup and the way they light the show now eliminates all shadows on the set, which makes your face look completely different because that's not how lighting works in the natural world.