Expert explains why Elizabeth Holmes' facial expression is sometimes considered 'creepy'
A microexpressions expert has explained why Elizabeth Holmes’ facial expression feels so ‘creepy’ to some.
Holmes was the founder and former CEO of Theranos, a blood testing company that claimed it could carry out complex health tests using just a few drops of blood extracted from your finger and was tipped to revolutionise medical testing.
However, the device, dubbed The Edison, did not work as promised - a fact that Theranos, which was once valued at $9 billion, kept quiet from investors.
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In 2022, Holmes was convicted of defrauding investors but acquitted of defrauding patients and was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.
The story is back in the headlines again with the release of Nathan Fielder’s documentary You Can See Everything, which sees him following Holmes in the weeks before she began serving her prison sentence.
A teaser trailer for the documentary shows Holmes earnestly asking Fielder: “Why would I deceive you?” while looking into his eyes.
On social media, many folks said the short clip left them feeling uncomfortable, with one saying it had an ‘uncanny valley vibe’ and another posting that the trailer felt ‘creepy and awkward’ to watch.
Body language and microexpressions expert Annie Särnblad has weighed in on the clip and broken down what it is that makes Holmes’ facial expression seem so off after receiving a ‘ton of DMs’ about the trailer.
In a clip shared on Instagram, she explained: “The reason this is so creepy is that it shows the dissociative gaze together with a smile.
“So, the dissociative haze is a hard pull back of the upper eyelids that is held. We do this when we want to disconnect from our emotions, when we are overstimulated and overwhelmed.”
Särnblad said the expression can be seen in soldiers when returning from warzones.
“We pull our upper eyelids back in fear, but the expression of fear isn’t usually held. The dissociative gaze is held.
“And then on top of that, we add a smile.”
Särnblad then liked the combination to the Joker’s face from Batman and said that she taught her children to recognise this expression when they were young and to let her know if they ever saw it.
“This particular expression sets our nervous system on high alert,” Särnblad continued.
She then urged her followers to try it out for themselves by standing in front of a mirror, pulling their eyelids back and smiling to see how it made them feel.
Särnblad concluded the clip by saying when in doubt about how you feel about someone or the expression they’re using, always trust your gut instincts.
Topics: TV and Film
Claire Reid