See Gavin Newsom Like You’ve Never Seen Him — Without Hair Gel

Have you ever wondered what some of your favorite celebrities, or even politicians, would look like with a totally different hairdo or facial feature? Like Jenna Ortega without eyebrows (oh wait, she already tried that) or President Donald Trump rocking full-on curls? While lots of stars do switch things up, usually for a movie or TV role, some stick with the same look for decades. Take California Governor Gavin Newsom, for example.

For as long as we can remember, he’s been rocking that slicked-back, gelled hair that makes you wonder if his hair even knows how to lay any other way. And while most photos suggest the answer is a hard “no,” there’s one image making the rounds that proves Newsom’s hair wasn’t always slicked down with gel. Take a look.

Don’t expect to catch Gavin Newsom without hair gel anytime soon, as he’s been rocking that slicked-back style for what seems like eternity. But there was that one rare occasion when he stepped out in public without a drop of product in his hair.

The sighting happened in October 2006 during Gap’s “Individuals” photo exhibition and the brand’s launch of Product (RED), and SF Gate even reported on the event with the headline, “Where Were You the Day Gavin Changed His ‘Do’?” For the campaign, which launched in 2006, Gap partnered with RED to sell red-colored clothing featuring the organization’s name in parentheses, with half of the profits donated to the Global Fund to support HIV/AIDS.

Newsom, who was San Francisco’s mayor at the time (a role he first took on in 2004 and held through 2011), showed up sporting a shirt in support of the campaign that read “MAYO(RED).” His hair, casually parted to the sides, had not a hint of gel in sight. It was certainly a memorable day for those who saw him, and now, one for those of you reading this, as you’ve officially witnessed Newsom with a look you can’t unsee.

Newsom’s throwback photo without gel became a hot topic on Threads in mid-September 2025, after user @andykaczynski posted it with the caption, “Every once in a while, I look at this photo of Gavin Newsom without hair gel and have a small stroke.”

With the post racking up over 3 million views in just two days, it’s safe to say more people than ever now know what Newsom looks like without gel, and boy, do they have opinions about his hairdo.

One of the funnier takes came from a user who compared Newsom’s down-slicked hair to Robert Carradine’s, you know, Sam McGuire, the dad in Lizzie McGuire starring Hilary Duff. They even shared a photo of Carradine sporting a similar do and captioned it, “Robert Carradine would like a word.” That reply got over 400 likes, so clearly, the comparison was spot-on.

Meanwhile, some commenters couldn’t believe it was really Newsom, writing things like, “Not Gavin Newsom.” But sorry to burst your bubble, the photo of Newsom with no gel, wearing the RED campaign T-shirt, is indeed him. And we can thank SF Gate for reporting on it, giving us receipts that yes, there was a day when Newsom let his locks run free (or maybe he just ran out of gel and didn’t have time to grab more).