There is evidence that Burt Lancaster had extensive plastic surgery. Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Richard Fleming told ABC News that Lancaster had a facelift, and that “Without cosmetic surgery, gravity always wins.” While Lancaster’s cosmetic changes likely helped, or at least didn’t hurt, his career, this is not always the case for actors who alter their appearance. In fact, Lancaster himself indirectly benefited from such an incident. Actor Robert Mitchum was up for a role in the 1980 film “Atlantic City,” according to Jezebel. However, he was rejected for the part after he had a facelift.
Mitchum’s loss was Lancaster’s gain. Lancaster was eventually cast in the Louis Malle film, according to History. He played an aging gangster and earned his fourth Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his efforts. Lancaster went on to play memorable roles in 1983’s “Local Hero” and 1989’s “Field of Dreams” before dying of a heart attack in 1994 at the age of 80. However he’d changed his face, his eyes had seen him through a long and varied career.
