Jennifer Garner is promoting The Tribes Of Palos Verdes. At some point she did an interview with www.news.com.au, an outlet out of Australia. Is the name of the outlet the same as their website url? If you are Australian and you have some insight on this, please let me know. It’s weird because… well… these are very specific quotes about her life, her personal life, and this is not PEOPLE or Entertainment Weekly. Which is why something’s pinging me a bit off about the source. Anyway, here’s how it reads:
IT’S been more than two years since Jennifer Garner separated from Ben Affleck, but it seems she’s not ready to move on.
“I would not have chosen this life for myself or for my kids. I would not choose to be single or be in this position. It’s something that we are working through. I haven’t been on a date and I am not interested in dating,” she tells news.com.au, shaking her head. “People want to set me up and I am just like, ‘No thank you!’”
The estranged couple are co-parenting their three children: Violet, 11, Seraphina, 8, and Sam, 5. With two daughters to raise, she must consider the conversations she will have about men.
“We can’t lump all men into [the same category]. We can’t just assume that every man has done something awful or that every man is guilty; due process is important and has to take place.”
Ben Affleck was among the litany of men in Hollywood accused of sexual misconduct, although by no means at the same level as Harvey Weinstein or Louis C. K.
Affleck told news.com.au recently, “I need to look at my own behaviour and think about how am I behaving — how am I treating people, and when I am wrong, admitting it when confronted with it.”
On the subject of whether we are at a sexual abuse and harassment tipping-point, Garner says earnestly, “Things have to come out in the open in order to be dealt with, and this is definitely one of those times. It’s messy, it’s not pretty, but a wound when it’s healing is a horrible thing to look at and to be around,” she says. “That is where we are. There are a lot of really smart people asking tough questions, and I feel excited to see what the outcome will be.
She leans forward, asking, “Did you read about the agricultural women workers? They said, ‘We stand in solidarity with our sisters in Hollywood.’ That really touched me because it felt, ‘Okay, it’s not just a bunch of solipsistic navel-gazing actresses.’ It’s really important conversation to be had.
“We need to be talking about how to educate and protect our young women and how women can do a better job of standing together. Women need to be there for each other so that we’re a more of a force. When you are siphoned off or siphoned off by yourself, you’re not that scary. Except for me.” She smiles. “I am pretty scary.”
In her next role in The Tribes of Palos Verdes, she plays against type as a woman whose husband is unfaithful. The subject matter was a little close to home as her marriage to Affleck was plagued by rumours of his infidelities, most notably with their children’s nanny, Christine Ouzounian.
“Was it cathartic [to play this role]? Yes it was, actually. I didn’t know that it would be, but it was. I know I need to work through some things,” she says. “Of course, it was a really emotional performance and that made me nervous because I felt like people would say, ‘Oh, she’s just playing out [her feelings]. But you can believe what you want to believe.”
I tell her that Affleck continues to gush about her maternal skills, describing her as the best mother in the world. She says simply, ‘That’s nice.’” But on the subject of being a ‘super mum,’ she adds, “I don’t know about that. You’d have to ask my kids. If you had the Affleck kids here, they would say, ‘Well, first of all, she was with you today instead of picking us up from school!’” She laughs. “Kids are tough on you.”
Despite how she feels about her estranged husband, her family comes first. “We will all be together for Thanksgiving. I love Ben, I wouldn’t want him to….” she trails off.
“We will be together with our kids and give them a special Christmas. We get along really well and it’s not an issue. We are friends; we can manage it.”
See what I mean? There’s not context for any of these quotes and how they came up in conversation. Bringing up the nanny and then following with her comments about her performance seems misleading. She was talking about finding catharsis in her performance. I’m not sure she would have been wanting to answer that way if Chrissy O had been part of the question though, you know?
That said, there are some points worth making here. First and foremost that while Ben Affleck is going for coffee with his girlfriend, Lindsay Shookus, in New York (photos attached from Friday), she’s the one saying that this is not the life she would have “chosen”. That, ahem, someone else’s choices happened to her. Is she defending Ben Affleck with her remark about not lumping men into one category? Yes, maybe, and also no? This is the father of her children. It’s a complicated situation for her. He struggles with addiction. His messy behaviour has been making headlines for the better part of two years now. Her priority is to consider how all that, and the fact that so much has been so public, will affect their kids. There’s really no easy answer to that question for her.
And then there’s my favourite quote, if indeed the quote came from her:
“I am pretty scary.”
Right. So is Amazing Amy.
How about her response to how Ben is always complimenting her on being a great mom?
“That’s nice.”
I can actually hear her saying that. And the skill involved in saying it. You can’t say it with any kind of sarcasm. You have to say it like you totally mean it while leaving some doubt about whether or not you mean it…without having the stink of insincerity stay on you. Does it come from the same place as “Bless his heart”?
Bless his heart, Justice League was projected to domestically bring in $96 million in its opening weekend but then got adjusted yesterday to $94 million. They’re hoping for a Thanksgiving bounce but, right now, it’s looking like Justice League is far, far from a win. Which doesn’t look good for Ben Affleck if he wants to stay on as Batman.
