Actor Jennifer Garner on Diane Keaton, 'collecting women' — and her consuming passions

You could be convinced that Jennifer Garner is just your average time-strapped working mother, rather than an internationally famous actor. When I video call her one Friday morning, she is remarkably down to earth; immediately she puts her phone down and for the following 10 minutes I am treated to an exclusive close-up of the A-lister’s passenger-seat footwell. ‘Sorry, I have just dropped my kids at school. I didn’t think this through, so we’re on the fly,’ says the 53-year-old mother of three, as she navigates the Los Angeles traffic with a mug of coffee from home in the cupholder. ‘I had it all together. I got up, worked out and showered, and then I realised I didn’t arrange anyone to take the kids to school so that I could do this interview,’ she explains with all the hapless loveability of her 13 Going On 30 character Jenna Rink.

If you haven’t seen her much-parodied turn in the charming romcom, you may instead know her as the spy Sydney Bristow from J. J. Abrams’s Alias, for which she won a Golden Globe. She also kicked cinematic butt as the superhero Elektra in the 2003 Marvel film Daredevil, alongside her ex-husband Ben Affleck, and starred in subsequent films for the franchise. She is currently gearing up to star in the adaptation of the Elin Hilderbrand novel The Five-Star Weekend, and will also be reprising her role as Hannah Hall in the second series of the thriller The Last Thing He Told Me, in February next year.

Jennifer was born in Texas; her father was a chemical engineer and her mother was an English teacher. She was raised in West Virginia with her two sisters and originally studied chemistry, before changing to theatre at Denison University in Ohio. She started her career as an understudy for the Roundabout Theatre Company in New York before a starring role in the teenage drama series Time of Your Life in 1999. Smaller roles in the films Pearl Harbour and Catch Me If You Can came next, and the rest is history.

In addition to acting, she serves on the board of Save the Children and is the co-founder of Once Upon a Farm, an organic baby food company, which is set to expand to the UK soon. So, with all that going on, is she ready for Christmas? ‘In theory,’ she says. ‘I think I will have a panicked day at some point between now and December 25.’ Jennifer, clearly, is a very busy woman with a lot of spinning plates, but she clearly loves spinning said plates. ‘The whole point of being an actor is that you get to play around and peek into different lives and see how they fit, and what you think, and so I’ve loved both roles I’ve played this year,’ she says. ‘I’m grateful, it’s been a great year of work… it is crazy, but at the same time, there are only so many hours in the day, and the kids are ultimately going to win, so it’s just a case of slotting things in and figuring it out.’

The actor’s reputation for being one of the nicest names in Hollywood is well deserved. She lives with her children, their cat Moose (who she describes as ‘her favourite person’), their labrador, Bugs, and their doodle-cross, Kitty, in a house full of books (the family are all voracious readers). ‘All of our animals are named after other animals,’ Jennifer says, with a charming smile that sums up that inherent whimsy of hers that has made her such a beloved household name.

Your aesthetic hero

When I think of this person, I think of who they were as a person. The homes that they created, that I was so lucky to get to see so many of here in LA, and the joie de vivre that you could see in whatever they wore, and how they lived, and who they were. And that's Diane Keaton. [Keaton also renovated, redesigned and sold several mansions in California, including one that she sold to Madonna.]

A book you found inspiring

I was just talking to someone about this book. It is This is Happiness, by Niall Williams. It is about a fictional town in Ireland that is coming to grips with the encroaching change of electricity. What inspires me about it is that, as disruptive as it is, ultimately stories, connection, people — are still the heart of what matters. And I feel like I'm so unnerved by AI's march toward all of us, and the automation of our world, and it's just a reminder that we've been through these moments before, and that there is no substitute for human connection.

The last thing of note that you bought yourself

A really nice mattress. It’s so good that I don't even want to go on a work trip or on vacation, because I just cannot wait to get back to my mattress.

An exhibition that has really impressed you

When I was in college, there was this huge exhibition at the MoMA of Matisse. I'd been to New York, but I didn't know about MoMA. But my boyfriend's mom at the time said: “It's super important that you see this exhibition,” and so she flew us to New York from Ohio for the weekend — which was unheard of to me. We got to go see this exhibit, and just to see the breadth of the work that Matisse did over really stuck with me — the longevity of just how much you can explore as an artist, how much you can see and do, and also the joy of his work, the dance, the colours, the vibrancy. It just felt very joyful.

A possession you would never sell

My dad gave me a teddy bear. I think it's the only thing that my dad chose for me and gave me. Mom took care of Christmas and birthdays, but Dad got a teddy bear for me from Sears, which was his favourite store; it had all the tools, and he loved tools. It’s name is T Bear, and I wore overalls growing up all the time. I loved overalls. And, one morning I woke up on Christmas morning and I couldn't find T Bear to take him downstairs with me for Christmas. I was so upset. Mom said: “Don't worry, just come downstairs,” and when we got downstairs, T Bear was wearing overalls that my mom had made for him, and she embroidered ‘T Bear’ across the bib of the overalls. So he is in my room and he is not going anywhere.

The music you work to

If I’m in my trailer, it’s Stevie Wonder. My most listened to song last year was Overjoyed by Stevie Wonder. [She sings a snippet to make sure I know the one.] That one, I would get it stuck in everyone's head. It was just my anthem for the year. I don't know why. That and Ribbon In The Sky. [She sings again.] Also, Bill Withers’s Lovely Day. I love those. If I'm just listening for fun, it's Gracie Abrams, and it's the country station, because I grew up where country music was king. Or the pianist Alexandra Stréliski, if I need to focus. A director who I adored, Jean-Marc Vallée, when we were prepping for Dallas Buyers Club, said: “There's music I want you to listen to when you're thinking about your character,” and he sent me this beautiful pianist, and devastatingly, he is gone now, but her music always reminds me of him.

The last podcast you listened to

It was either Kelly Corrigan’s podcast or Up First.

The person that would play you in a film of your life

Any of the girls who have played my daughters, whether that's Jenna Ortega, Maika Monroe, Angourie Rice or Emma Myers. I've had the most amazing movie daughters, and they know me really well, and I love them. So any of them.

What you’d take to a desert island

Assuming that you have water and food and some form of shelter and sunscreen available, I would take toilet paper — you know, I'm not a leaf kinda gal — and then a suitcase full of books and some friends to laugh with.

The thing that gets you up in the morning

Coffee and knowing I have a workout with friends.

The items you collect

I collect women. As friends — as sisters. I have two amazing sisters, and I think it means that I can slot in with women really easily, and I feel really comfortable with women, and I like that kind of intimate relationship. I'm better at that than parties. Parties kind of make me nervous, but I really have great, great women in my life. I collected women on 13 Going on 30. The costume designer from that movie, I've worked with ever since. Judy Greer [the actor] is still one of my closest friends. Judy’s in The Last Thing He Told Me, this season, she's also in The Five-Star Weekend. And a bunch of the women that I worked with, starting on Alias, which was right before 13 Going on 30, we still all work together.

A hotel you could go back and back to

There are lots. I really love a nice hotel. I love the Covent Garden Hotel, which is by Firmdale, because I’ve stayed there so many times and it represents to me what’s happening; either, I’m going to see some theatre, or I’m going to do something fun. I also love The Lowell in New York. They both just have a coziness to them, and they are close to the theatre, and I've been there with my family a bunch of times, so they feel lovely to me.

The most memorable meal you’ve ever eaten

During 13 Going on 30, my parents came to visit me, and we were shooting in New York. One night, I took them out to Daniel Boulud’s restaurant, and we had one of those five-hour meals, and it was just me and my parents, and I'm the middle sister, so I didn't have a ton of that one-on-one time growing up. It was just one of those nights where they told me things, and we talked about everything, and the food was so good and really adventurous for all of us, and it was just really special. That was a really memorable meal.

Your favourite painting

It's called Woman With Yellow Hair, it's by Picasso, and it hangs in the Guggenheim in New York. The reason I think of that one is that I took one of my kids on a surprise trip to New York for a birthday, and as part of it we looked through the paintings at the Guggenheim, and when we found Woman With Yellow Hair, they just stood there in front of it for so long, captivated by the curve in the painting. It's very sumptuous, kind of dreamy, and the opposite of the Cubist Picasso. You feel like you could rest on this woman's arm as she's resting on her table.

The best present you’ve ever received

My daughter one year made me these coupons, when she was about 16 or 17. They say things like: ‘Mama was right: siblings are the most important’; ‘Mama was right: everything works out in the end’; ‘Mama was right: I love my driver's license’. That’s my favourite gift.

The latest season of ‘The Last Thing He Told Me’ will be out on Apple TV in February next year. You can find out more about Once Upon A Farm here.