Created by television producer Howard Schultz, the show depicts ordinary men and women undergoing "extreme makeovers" involving plastic surgery, exercise regimens, hairdressing, and wardrobing.
It is believed by critics that the show implies that idealized beauty can only be found through the aid of cosmetic surgeons, placing 'beauty' as a relatively unachievable goal for most people.
[10] Comparisons have been drawn to how some women claim a sense of empowerment from finding themselves the object of male desire, either in general social settings or through their given profession–for example, in the pornography industry.
It is the further perpetuation of these difficult to achieve, and debatably unhealthy beauty standards that have given rise to the critical assessment of Extreme Makeover, as well as other shows like it.
After the surgery was canceled Deleese's sister Kellie suffered from guilt for making the negative comments; she died from an intentional drug overdose in May 2004.