Renee Zellweger could not have known her presence at Elle's Women in Hollywood Awards in Beverly Hills Monday would cause such a fuss. What followed was a firestorm of speculation why she looks so different. Plastic surgery? Illness?

The topic of her appearance became quite a trend on Twitter Tuesday with fans tweeting she is nearly "unrecognizable." The brouhaha prompted the 45-year-old actress, producer and voice artist to issue People magazine a statement that she looks different because she's "living a different, happy, more fulfilling life."

Zellweger's most recent acting role was in the movie "My Own Love Song" in 2010. She says that people simply don't know her in her 40s. Her personal development and health has been the primary focus of her life in recent years and she is "thrilled that perhaps it shows."

The Academy Award-winning actress, who next stars in the movie "The Whole Truth," doesn't understand the uproar.

"My friends say that I look peaceful. I am healthy," she told E! Online. "For a long time I wasn't doing such a good job with that. I took on a schedule that is not realistically sustainable and didn't allow for taking care of myself. Rather than stopping to recalibrate, I kept running until I was depleted and made bad choices about how to conceal the exhaustion. I was aware of the chaos and finally chose different things."

Zellweger, who is dating Doyle Bramhall II, 45, says that she chooses work that allows her to make a home, love someone, learn new things, grow as a creative person and grow into herself.

Zellweger received two Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for her performances as Bridget Jones in the comedy "Bridget Jones's Diary" (2001), and as Roxie Hart in the musical "Chicago" (2002). She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Ruby Thewes in the drama "Cold Mountain" (2003).