Busy Philipps shows off a big smile and a summer glow on the cover of the new issue of Health magazine, but according to some fans, she doesn't show off one important part of her signature look — her beauty marks.
Now the star is firing back at that claim.
Philipps shared the July/August Health cover shot on Instagram Thursday, and while in the caption for the photo she focused on fitness, self-care and mental health, things took a turn in the comments section.
One follower complemented the actress, but criticized the image, calling it "manufactured," while another said, "I just wish they didn't Photoshop all the beautiful beauty marks that make you who you (are)."
But Philipps was quick to correct them.
"They didn’t and actually that was discussed," she wrote. "The light was super bright which is why they look less dark, but they did NOT airbrush off my moles. Promise you. I can show you the pics from the monitor at the shoot — it’s truly just the bright light making them a little lighter."
Just hours later, Philipps launched a one-day takeover of Health magazine's Instagram and did just that.
"Here's a (behind-the-scenes) shot from my phone with no photoshoping done!" she explained alongside yet-to-be retouched photos from the shoot.
Why all the fuss over a few freckles and moles? In short, those marks are a part of her that she's had to fight for in the past.
"I once got a TV show and apparently the network told the producers to have makeup COVER ALL MY MOLES," she wrote in a post last year. "Do you know that 1. That's literally almost impossible? 2. Moles covered with makeup look WAY weirder than when they're natural? 3. It's super insulting cause it's basically like saying, 'we ALMOST think you're pretty, if you just got rid of this major part of what you look like'??"
The "I Feel Pretty" star noted that, "Without them, I think I'd look kind of plain and boring."
Authenticity in her image and beyond is important to the 38-year-old mom, who's raising two young daughters with screenwriter Marc Silverman — a point she made clear when she sat down with TODAY in April.
"My mother used to say the Shakespeare quote, 'And this above all, to thine own self be true,'" said Philipps. "I really feel like it permeated my being, so we really try to encourage our girls to just be true to themselves."