Valerie Bertinelli's Gray Hair Transformation Left Her Unrecognizable

Actor Valerie Bertinelli made an appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show" on February 4, 2026, and both Bertinelli and Barrymore showed off their new gray hairstyles on the show. The transformation came to be thanks to the talent of celebrity stylist Chris Appleton, who works with stars like Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande. Appleton gave Bertinelli and Barrymore a makeover, revealing that he had transformed both of them from brunettes to silver foxes, with cool, sleek gray locks that looked great on both of them. 

Bertinelli jumped to Instagram to share her remarkable hairstyle. The transformation obviously struck a chord with her because the actor shared some wistful remarks about the sight of herself gray, which was quite likely a wig, since Bertinelli asked fans if she should fully commit to the new color. "Should I do it? Should I grow out my gray?" Bertinelli asked in the caption. She then went on to speak about the tenderness she has for the version of herself only she knows and the version that she presents to the world. And it was clearly a poignant moment, since Bertinelli's gray hair prompted such personal insights. Going gray can be a big transition for a lot of women, and there are several celebs who have embraced their graying natural hair color. Clearly, it's an empowering and loaded experience for many women, and evidently struck a chord with Bertinelli. 

Valerie Bertinelli has talked about graying hair before. In a since-removed video shared to Instagram in January 2024, Bertinelli spoke about the frustrations of gray hair after a fan accused her of wearing a wig online. "Can you get me a wig without flipping gray roots then, please, because I'm tired of getting my roots done every two weeks," Bertinelli said. "Thank goodness 99.9 percent of you are really kind, sweet people and don't give a flying flip whether I have roots or I put a filter on."

Clearly, Bertinelli is a little burnt out from keeping those roots in check, which is why so many women choose to embrace their gray. If you've been thinking about making that change, there's a low-maintenance hair technique that can help you transition to gray hair seamlessly, and there are also hairstyles for showing off your gray hair, because it's genuinely awesome. Part of the problem for many people is that they don't recognize themselves in the new color, and Bertinelli admitted to this after she experimented with a blond wig. Jumping on Instagram on November 11, 2025, she wrote: "It's always fun to play dress up and fool around with hair and make up, but when I look in the mirror, I want to see ... me," Bertinelli wrote in the caption, showcasing her return to brown hair. After describing her desire to honor the child she was, Bertinelli ended the caption, saying, "That little girl has brown hair." No doubt the same tensions apply to gray hair, too.