November 28, 2010: Affleck Family goes to Breakfast

Jennifer Garner and her two daughters, Violet and Seraphina were spotted today at Kay ‘N’ Dave’s restaurant in Santa Monica, where the three went out to breakfast. Both daughters were seen reading a book, and became ecstatic after breakfast when their father Ben showed up.



February 10, 2009: Garner Ranks #6 on list of “Top 10 Pregnant Performers”

In the fifth and final season of Alias, Garner announced to producers that she was pregnant with her (and Ben Affleck’s) first child. Instead of hiding the pregnancy through traditional methods, writers decided to incorporate it into the plot and her character, Sydney Bristow, became pregnant as well. Sydney continued to ‘kick butt’, and was impregnated by her on-screen love interest- who happened to be Garner’s real –life ex-boyfriend, Michael Vartan. The performance earned her a spot on Time’s List of “Top Ten Pregnant Performers” in entertainment history, along with stars like Lucille Ball, Cher, and MIA. 

Above: A very pregnant Sydney Bristow.

The full list can be seen here: Pregnant Performers

Spring 2009: Garner Lends a Hand for Charity

In the spring of 2009 Garner traveled to Washington D.C. to help launch the Save the Children’s 2009 State of the World’s Mothers report. She is an Artist Ambassador for the Save the Children Foundation and works with leaders on Capitol Hill towards higher funding for early childhood education funding. Garner collaborates with numerous other charities, including Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, which raises money for children with cancer; A-T Children’s Project, which aims to find a cure for ataxia-telengiectasia; and Children Mending Hearts, a global arts exchange between at-risk children in American and children living in conflict zones.

Above: The mother of two talks to children at a school in Washington D.C.

December 5, 2007: Playing an Eager Mother in Juno

Above: Garner, pictured with On-screen husband Mark (Jason Bateman) and Juno (Ellen Page).

Garner stars opposite Michael Cera, Jason Bateman, and Ellen Page in the comedy-drama Juno, a film about a teenager facing an unplanned pregnancy. Garners plays Vanessa, a prim and slightly uptight, yet endearing character who’s desperation to be a mother resonates with the audience. The film received both critical and popular acclaim. A review of the film can be seen here:

Juno Review

August 30, 2007: The Kingdom

An interviewer sits with Garner and discusses her role in the film The Kingdom. The two main foci of the interview deal with the nature of Garners character (an FBI agent) and how Garner cared for her daughter while on set.

May 2006: Goodbye Alias

December 19, 2005: It’s a Girl!

Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck welcomed their first daughter, Violet on December 1, 2005. According to People Magazine, a friend of the couple claims they are well on their way to becoming amazing parents, calling Ben “an amazing father”. Garner, who is “already known as something of a den mother on the Alias set, where she often brings brownies” is overjoyed at being a new mother.

July 7, 2005: Wedding Day

Jennifer Garner marries actor Ben Affleck at a small wedding ceremony at the Parrot Cay Resort on the Turks and Caicos Islands. Alias co-star Victor Garber officiated the wedding and was the only guest. According to Affleck’s longtime friend, producer Chris Moore, “Ben’s got the right woman and he’s excited about this new chapter in his life. He’s really excited about becoming a father and Jen seems ecstatic. She’s so in love and really happy to be married to him.”

January 14, 2005: Elektra Revisited

Garner reprises her role as Elektra Natchios in Elektra, the 2005 spin-off of Daredevil. The film, which received generally negative reviews, picks up where Daredevil  left off- with Elektra being revived from a near fatal blow from Daredevil’s villain. She is nursed to health by a martial arts master and becomes an assassin for hire. The plot centers on Elektra protecting Abby, a 13 year old martial arts prodigy she was originally contracted to kill (later we learn the assignment was a test). Below is the trailer for the film.

April 6, 2004: Alias Comes to Your Home Computer

Alias the PC game is launched, allowing viewers to take on the role of Agent Sydney Bristow. The game encompasses the key elements behind the series success, including high action combat, stealth missions, and time-based objectives, espionage, intriguing plot twists, high tech weaponry, and stunning game play locations.

April 23, 2004: Garner is "Thirty, Flirty, and Thriving"

Jennifer Garner stars in 13 Going on 30, a romantic comedy about a girl (Garner) who goes to sleep on her 13^th birthday and wakes up the next morning as a 30 year old woman. The movie features a famous scene (above) in which Garner leads a group of initially reluctant dancers in a performance of Michael Jackson’s hit song, “Thriller”. The scene inspired thousands of imitations in weddings, proms, etc, and widened Garner’s fan base to among young women.

March 8, 2004: Garner accepts a Challenge from the CIA…

In 2004, Garner is featured in a promotional video produced by the CIA Recruitment center and posted o the CIA Careers web page. The short video focuses on the CIA’s mission and its need for diversity in its employees. Garner was asked by the Office of Public Affairs after the CIA’s Film Industry Liaison had worked with the writers of Alias. According to the CIA, Sydney Bristow, while fictional, “embodies the integrity, patriotism, and intelligence the CIA looks for in its officers”. Below is a link to the CIA Press Release.

Press Release

February 14, 2003: New Roles

In early 2003 Garner stars opposite future husband Ben Affleck in the superhero film Daredevil, which is based off the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Garner plays heroine Elektra Natchios, the daughter of a billionaire journalist and love interest of Matt Murdock/ Daredevil (Affleck’s character). At a very young age, Elektra witnesses the murder of her mother, and since then her father has her highly trained in martial arts.

Above: In this still from the film, Garner’s character Elektra grapples with Daredevil, unaware that he is Matt Murdock, the man she has fallen in love with.

October 18, 2002: Garner’s star image utilized in the classroom

A 2002 issue of Scholastic Math magazine, an educational resource for elementary age children, highlights Jennifer Garner in its “Star Wrap” feature. The article is entitled “Jennifer’s Secret Powers” and instructs readers to “work with exponents to uncover some top-secret facts about Jennifer”, including trivia about her personal life and early career.

February 14, 2002: Rolling Stone Extols Garner’s Down Home Virtues

A Rolling Stone article from 2002 describes Garner’s appeal in relation to her upbringing and personal life, describing her as “a sweet girl from West Virginia who, as a teenager, was never allowed to pierce her ears or wear nail polish. She finds drunk people repellent, avoided parties in college, and dreamed of playing Hedda Gabler onstage.”  It goes on to inform readers of her athletic determinism, organization, bashful modesty, and willingness to joke with the camera crew or endure bruises on set. Her hometown of Charleston, West Virginia has a small population of 53,000, and her parents had strict rules and high, but gentle expectations of their three daughters. By demonstrating such ‘normalcy’, Garner seems accessible to her fan base, which now includes enchanted men, action junkies, and women who relate to Garner’s background. Notably, many of Garner’s traits described in this article are similar to those of her alter ego Sydney Bristow, effectively fusing her star image with her character.

February 4, 2002: Time Magazine Profiles Golden Globe Winner

“Garner's ability to plausibly embody Bristow's many identities--cheerful graduate student, plucky double agent, vulnerable loner and (this part is key) killer clotheshorse--helped the actress become something else last week: a Golden Globe winner.” A 2002 Time article profiles Jennifer Garner shortly after her unexpected Golden Globe win, and looks at how her character, Sydney Bristow, succeeds in capturing the viewer’s affection where other femme fatales have failed. It credits Alias for the show’s refusal to “make a strong woman seem like an estrogen deprived freak”, and claims Garner’s appearance gives her character credibility. “Tall and slim, with flying buttresses for cheekbones and pincushion lips, she is saved from true, distracting beauty by her masculine jaw and long forehead.” According to the Time, Garner is able to balance feminine accessibility, superhero antics, and intriguing (yet believable) good looks in a way that allows her to “go about the business of gathering intelligence and trapping bad guys as if spies were just women who are really good at multitasking”.

Time Article

October 2001: Breakout Role

In September of 2001, J.J. Abrams’s Alias premiers on ABC. Garner debuts as double agent Sydney Bristow, and is almost immediately propelled to stardom. For her role, she goes on to win a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Television) and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series.