By Shari Von Holten, HaveUHeard
Not only is Jessica Alba beautiful – she is down to earth, funny and very honest. While she was in New York promoting her latest film, Little Fockers, I had the chance to speak with Jessica and find out what it was like working with her iconic co-stars, Barbara Streisand, Dustin Hoffman, Robert DeNiro, Blythe Danner and Teri Polo, as well as how being a mother has changed her and what her daughter, Honor, is like.
Jessica plays a gorgeous drug saleswoman in Little Fockers who likes working with Greg Focker, played by Ben Stiller, a little too much. It turns out that in reality working with Ben Stiller was one of the reasons Jessica decided to take the role. When asked what made her take the role Jessica stated, “The cast is terrible. Paul Weitz, never heard of him. American Pie, About a Boy. (of course she was being sarcastic). Paul, the director, first of all, is fantastic. And then, obviously, is there a better comedian, writer, director, actor than Ben Stiller right now? He’s amazing. I mean, just as an actor. But, he’s incredible. And so, I feel so lucky and honored to have the opportunity to even be in this group of people and these actors. I learned a lot, and it was challenging. And I’ve never done a comedy before like this, and I’ve always wanted to. It’s kind of why I started acting is to make people laugh.”
As for being the newcomer to the cast who have already worked together on two other films, Jessica stated that “it was actually completely intimidating that I had to just pray to God I wasn’t going to get fired and have fun.”
Jessica also revealed how the roles she chooses have changed since giving birth to her daughter, Honor. Prior to Honor, Jessica was happy to have a job and pretty much took any job she could get. This meant she worked 12 months a year for a decade for the most part. It was after giving birth to Honor and taking time off she realized that she had family, friends and a home. Living in a hotel and being in her bed for only 10 days a year was no longer appealing. Jessica stated, “At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, who cares if you have a great career or if you’ve been in this or that movie. It’s, “What experiences did you have and what relationships are important to you?” And that’s more important and what life is really about.”
Jessica wants to spend time with her daughter and if she chooses a role it has to be worth it, it has to be something that she is passionate about and not too time-consuming. She doesn’t want to miss her saying funny things and learning how to ride a tricycle or her getting excited about a Barbie doll.
A surprising fact I learned was that Honor has never seen a Disney movie. Jessica revealed that she doesn’t like her watching too much television and she doesn’t want her to have bad dreams. Since there is always a villain in Disney movies, Jessica would prefer that Honor watch Yo Gabba Gabba, The Backyardigans or Strawberry Shortcake.
And that’s usually only when they are on a plane. Otherwise she would prefer that she is stimulated with other things like playing dress up and coloring.
The biggest challenge of being a mom for Jessica has been “being okay with not always having the answer and forgiving myself for not spending every second with her. Knowing that she’s going have to be sad or disappointed or angry. And even though I feel totally responsible for it, letting that go and knowing that that’s just part of being a human being. And at the end of the day, it’ll be good for her, as long as she knows she’s loved, but all that stuff’s really hard.”
Having Honor has made Jessica feel as though she has finally come into her own. Jessica stated, “Everything just sort of made sense. And I was certainly not as hard on myself, certainly not as critical and enjoyed life a lot more and having a different perspective on life, on the business, on family, on everything was amazing.”
More great interviews to come.
Little Fockers will be in theaters on December 22, 2010.
Role Mommy 3.0