January 08, 2026
Serena Williams found herself at the center of a new controversy but her husband, Alexis Ohanian, wasted no time in standing by her side.
Skin bleaching rumors surfaced online after the tennis icon put up family photos from her sister Venus Williams’ wedding.
She took to X (formerly Twitter) to put up a carousal of photos captioned as, "Joy does not always roar sometimes it whispers. It important to savor those sweet moments… I love this picture so I wanted to share it with you."
Social media users claimed the 23-time Grand Slam champion has used products to lighten her skin tone.
Ohanian clapped back at critics online.
He wrote alongside the retired tennis player’s post, "Where are all the comments from idiots who don’t understand how photography lighting works."
A particular netizen commented, "Alexis wants Black people to believe we don’t know what photography lighting looks like vs blatant skin lightening."
The Reddit co-founder responded, "Or: photos from the same event can look different based on lighting."
Williams herself has refuted claims of skin bleaching.
Last year in December, she addressed fans speculation that arose after she put up a video of herself at a school event with her husband and daughters.
She told her viewers during live interaction via Instagram, "No, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin."