Equally comfortable in designer gowns or jeans, Jennifer Garner tries not to sweat the small stuff in the minefield of Hollywood.
By Laurie Sandell
updated 4:28 p.m. ET Nov. 19, 2007
OK, I’m just going to put it out there: On paper, Jennifer Garner is one of those annoyingly perfect people. She’s had success on the small screen (as Sydney Bristow in ABC’s cult spy series, “Alias”) and the big screen (in 2004’s “13 Going on 30” and this year’s “The Kingdom”, to name a few). She’s got the cute guy and the cute kid — and fans pretty much everywhere she goes. “It’s hard not to fall just a little bit in love with Jennifer; she has a warmth she’s unable to hide,” says Victor Garber, her former costar on “Alias” and the man who officiated at her 2005 wedding to Ben Affleck. Susannah Grant, who directed her in the 2007 film “Catch & Release,” says she’s “goofy as all hell.”
Then I meet her at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in New York City and discover that the 35-year-old star is perfect, as in perfectly normal (she’s wearing jeans and a messy ponytail) and perfectly human (she admits to major guilt about spending time away from her two-year-old daughter, Violet). She’s also perfectly charming as she talks about her new comedy, “Juno”; the reason she and Ben don’t walk the red carpet together; and the charity work she does for the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) and the American Lung Association (ALA) to encourage flu vaccination. Read on and you’ll fall just a little bit in love with her too.
Glamour: Your press is impeccable. Your fans adore you. Do you have a dark side, or are you a goody-goody?
Jennifer Garner: You totally called me out. I am a bit of a goody-goody. Not that there aren’t times when I think, I was kind of an (ass) today. I work in a world in which people are really catered to; someone will come up to me and say, “Is it OK if this person’s makeup is done before yours for the premiere?” Right now Ben’s in Africa studying malaria and visiting slums with a lack of potable water and maternity wards where many women have HIV. So would I really put my energy into worrying that I’m second to get my makeup done? When you think about the bigger picture, it’s hard to not have some perspective.
Glamour: You went to New Orleans on behalf of the CDF to survey the remaining damage done by Katrina. Now you’re on TV this fall for the ALA, raising awareness about flu vaccinations. How do you choose a cause to support?
JG: They’re all worthy, but you have to follow your heart. In New Orleans, I saw kids growing up in FEMA trailers with nine other people, and mothers who couldn’t get medicine for their children because their insurance didn’t cross state lines. One girl I met went home sick, throwing up, whenever it rained because she was afraid there was going to be another big storm.
Glamour: Does seeing that kind of thing just leave you feeling overwhelmed and depressed?
JG: I would have felt really helpless had I not been there with (Children’s Defense Fund founder and president) Marian (Wright Edelman). She’s had such success in introducing legislation to change the way children are treated in this country, and she taught me the importance of continuing to speak out. For three years I’ve been a presenter at the CDF’s Beat the Odds Awards, which honors kids who are succeeding despite huge obstacles. The idea is to make them visible so other kids will say, “I can do that too.” When I look at Marian, I think, “You will show me a way to help.” Otherwise, what good does it do to see all that tragedy?
Glamour: Who are some other women you admire?
JG: My younger sister is my hero: She’s a mom and an accountant for the state of West Virginia. She’s able to juggle a job, kids, volunteer work and church, and she still manages to cook dinner every night without feeling bogged down. There are lots of people out there who are literally heroic, but what she does counts too.
Glamour: Have you managed to find that balance for yourself?
JG: I’m trying to, but it’s hard: I just had a year off where I put every spoonful of food into (Violet’s) mouth. Now I’m working and though I’m usually with her more hours than not, some days I just can’t be. That’s hard for me, and for the first time, my daughter. Luckily my husband is a true partner, and he picks up where I leave off.
Glamour: Is being in Hollywood hard on a relationship?
JG: We’ve worked really hard not to be one of those couples who are constantly in the limelight. In the past we’ve both been the kind of people who go along with things — if you’re supposed to be photographed together, you don’t question it. But how does that help your relationship? So now we refuse to walk the red carpet together: It’s a way of not condoning the attention. Plus, it just feels silly to be in that situation with him: Ben was nominated for a Golden Globe (for 2006’s “Hollywoodland”). I remember being photographed next to him and thinking, “This is ridiculous. You’re not some actor; you’re my husband. ”
Glamour: J.J. Abrams (creator of “Alias”) said you were “raised right.” Why do you think younger women in Hollywood, like Britney Spears, are having such a hard time figuring out how to behave?
JG: My heart just goes out to those girls, especially Britney. After her performance at the VMAs (MTV’s Video Music Awards, where Garner was a presenter), I wanted to go backstage and mother her. The way everyone was celebrating (her shaky performance) was so unfair. If I’d experienced that level of scrutiny at her age — even with my background — I don’t know if today you’d be saying I was “raised right.”
Glamour: Do you ever worry that Violet is growing up in the spotlight?
JG: It’s not my favorite thing, but it’s a fact of life. It’s important to us that she remain a kid. If she wants to do theater someday, OK. But as far as making a living from it-, that’s not a kid’s job. We won’t allow it.
Glamour: You’re starring in “Juno,” a comedy about a pregnant teen who gives her baby up for adoption — you’re the adoptive mom. It got huge buzz at this year’s Toronto Film Festival.
JG: I’ve only seen “Juno” twice, but I cried my head off both times, in the best, most joyful way. I loved it. The character I play is an overachiever who’s always wanted things to fit into her life the way they’re supposed to fit, so when she isn’t able to get pregnant, she feels a sense of failure.
Glamour: So do you see yourself having another child?
JG: I always wanted to have several. And Violet needs a sibling. But I’m not pregnant, and we’re not trying yet. (Laughs.)
Glamour: Do you ever wear your “Alias” getups for Ben?
JG: (Laughs) I don’t have those costumes anymore. But Ben wouldn’t notice; he is the best and worst in that way. We’ll be going out to some event, and I’ll have my hair and makeup done and I’ll literally have to say, “Hey, look at me!” But it works in my favor, too, since most of the time I’m a schlep!
Glamour: You had an insane body on “Alias” — has it changed post-baby?
JG: Well, sometimes this (grabs a roll on her stomach) can make me a bit crazy. I don’t understand how women can manage to get back in shape with a new baby and a job. I couldn’t even touch exercise until I finished working on “Alias.” And trying to work out when you have a second and third child … How is that supposed to happen?
Glamour: And the paparazzi don’t give you a break to get back in shape ...
JG: It was painful and embarrassing (to see myself in photos), but I wasn’t going to spend time working out that I could have spent with Violet. I was like, ‘Screw it — what am I going to do?’
Glamour: You’ve landed on plenty of “Beautiful People” lists, but you’ve also referred to yourself as a “huge dork.” How is that possible?
JG: Trust me, I can be awkward. I tend to make big gestures. Ben and I went to a Red Sox game, and when the mascot came up to us, I hugged it. The pictures showed up everywhere. Ben and I were both like, “Ooh, too big of a gesture.” Why did I have to hug the sock? Just say hello like a normal person.
Glamour: Lastly, what’s your vision of a modern, successful, kick-ass woman?
JG: Someone who unapologetically defines herself, whether to say, “I love my career; that’s going to be my focus” or “I want to be home.” To be willing to grab on to that; to know what you want and do it.
To learn more about Garner’s flu vaccination campaign, go to facesofinfluenza.org; and for more information on the CDF, go to childrensdefense.org. For more inspiring stories, pick up the December issue of Glamour.
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