Humans have been doing cosmetic procedures since the dawn of time. Nowadays, rhinoplasty, lip fillers and BBLs are among the most common ones to see online. And although they all carry risks, for the most part, they are performed safely. Yet, a concerning new beauty trend of folks changing the colors of their eyes has been rapidly growing over the past decade, and there is a documentary that has folks online shook. Brace yourself.
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The documentary, “Caterpillar,” was released in 2023 but only recently hit the Netflix catalog. It follows David Taylor, a self-conscious biracial man from Miami. Throughout the film, Taylor reveals that he has past trauma when it comes to his looks and beauty. Therefore, he wants to change his features, particularly his eye color, in hopes that a change in his appearance will bring him better life opportunities.
That is how Taylor stumbles across BrightOcular, a company that can change the color of your iris through a “United States developed artificial iris implant made of a thin, flexible, biocompatible, colored medical grade silicone used for permanent eye color change procedure,” according to its website.
However, while the website boasts that the surgery was developed and approved in the U.S., it has not been approved or tested by clinical trials by a U.S. regulatory agency, per the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). This is most likely because the procedure comes with multiple risks, such as glaucoma, cataracts, or total blindness, according to the AAO.
Therefore, like Taylor, anyone who has the surgery flies outside of the United States. In fact, people fly from all over the world to have the surgery done, and it has been going on for years. Tiny Harris famously had her eye color permanently changed by the same company in Africa back in 2014. According to ABC News, Harris posted on Instagram at the time that her vision remained perfect and even gave her followers a discount code for the surgery.
Even though Harris had a great experience, the same cannot be said for Taylor and the other patients in the documentary. To have his eye color changed from brown to ice grey, Taylor flew to India and found himself in an operating room with multiple other patients. Having doctors work on numerous surgeries simultaneously had Taylor stressed—and rightfully so—since he ended up with the wrong eye color by the end of his treatment.
The solution? Taylor could have the implanted iris removed and swapped with the patient who had the eye color Taylor wanted. Another surgery fail occurred when one client was given an artificial iris that was ripped.
On TikTok, one user, @susthepod, gave a quick rundown of the documentary that left his users feeling sad for Taylor and the other patients who visited the BrightOcular clinic.
“There’s some insecurities going on, he (Taylor) had a rough, rough life,” @susthepod said. “He just needed something to give him a confidence boost.”
Hearing this, one viewer commented that Taylor needed affection. “I really felt bad for him, not because of the surgery but because of why he wanted to get the surgery. He needed a hug, not surgery.”
“He put too much faith in eye color. He thought it was going to make a miracle,” wrote another.
“I felt awful for him the entire time,” added a third user.
Another TikToker, @dripbydeshon, made a post saying that he would have sued the clinic if he had gone through the same experience Taylor did.
“I don’t know what to think. My brain is going a million miles per minute,” he said. “I don’t know what I would’ve done in that situation besides probably jump off a bridge. It was too much.”
In the comments, one user shook their head at the idea of people getting the surgery: “Never play with something so sensitive,” they wrote.
Another thanked David Taylor for starring in the documentary, “Just finished watching. Great documentary. David, thank you for sharing your story.”
By the end of the documentary, Taylor has to get the implanted irises removed because they were affecting his vision. Today, three years post-surgery, he spends his time posting on Instagram with his natural brown eyes while also promoting the documentary to spread awareness about the dangerous procedure.
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