Alexis Ohanian Slams ‘Idiots’ Over Serena Williams Bleaching

The entrepreneur defended his wife’s looks and slammed the critics for not understanding how lighting works in pictures. 

Williams herself also spoke out over the bleaching allegations and outrightly denied doing anything to alter the color of her skin. 

The drama unfolded after Williams took to X to share heartwarming photos of her family at her sister, Venus Williams’ wedding.

In the images, the tennis legend was captured dressed in a chic white number as she crouched next to her husband and two children. Two-year-old Adira and eight-year-old Olympia also made the cut, dressed in matching light blue dresses. 

Williams wrote in the caption, “Joy does not always roar, sometimes it whispers. [It’s] important to savor those sweet moments… I love this picture, so I wanted to share it with you.”

When users in the comment section began to accuse the tennis legend of bleaching her skin, Ohanian quoted the picture with the comment, “Where are all the comments from idiots who don’t understand how photography lighting works.”

A critic replied to his tweet, writing, “Alexis wants Black people to believe we don’t know what photography lighting looks like vs blatant skin lightening.”

However, he clapped back, writing, “Or: photos from the same event can look different based on lighting.”

This is not the first time the Golden Slam winner has been accused of bleaching her skin. In early December 2025, Williams openly addressed the bleaching allegations, making it clear that she has done nothing to change the color of her skin. 

According to PEOPLE Magazine, the 44-year-old athlete was in the process of recording a makeup tutorial for her brand, Wyn Beauty, when she brought the topic up. 

“And then I put just that neutral color, that is actually my skin color, and no, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin… There is a thing called sunlight, and in that sunlight, you get different colors,” she said as she applied her makeup. 

Williams made it clear that she is proud of her skin color, the way it is, and called the bleaching allegations “ridiculous.”

She added, “Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, she bleached her skin.’ I’m a dark, Black woman, and I love who I am, and I love how I look.” 

Williams also made it clear that while she holds no judgment against people who decide to bleach their skin, bleaching is just not her thing. 

While Williams firmly denied the bleaching rumors, she has always been open about the work she has done on her body. 

In June, she revealed that she underwent a radio frequency treatment in Paris to tighten her stomach. She shared a video of herself lying on a table while the device was being used on her.

In the caption, she revealed that she has always been “self-conscious” of her tummy and decided to do something about it as soon as she got time away from the kids and from work.

Bleaching isn’t the only thing Williams has had to address recently. She also had to clear the air about whether or not she was pausing her retirement to return to tennis. 

According to The Blast, last month she took to X to shut down the claims, writing, “Omg y’all I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy.”