Jennifer Garner is probably one of the most underrated people and actresses in the game right now, but I think thanks to her speech at Elle's Women in Hollywood event (aka the one that served as a backdrop for Renee Zellweger controversy), that will finally change.
"I mean, the Men in Hollywood event is every day," she began. "It's called Hollywood."
BOOM.
"My husband and I do the same kind of job — a little bit," she continued. "Not long ago, we both had one of those magical days which we call a junket, where we both attended these lovely events where people come in every four minutes and ask the same questions."
Then, they came home and compared notes.
"I told him every single person who interviewed me — and I mean every single one — asked me: 'How do you balance work and family?' [Ben] said the only thing anyone asked him repeatedly was about the tits on the 'Blurred Lines' girl [Emily Ratajkowski, in Gone Girl]! We're talking about them — they are real and they are fabulous and everyone should take a look and enjoy. As for work-life balance, he said that no one asked him about it that day. As a matter of fact, no one has ever asked him about it. Not once."
"And we do share the same family. Isn't it kind of time to change the conversation?"
Um, YES. Because "having it all" and "balancing it all" and "juggling it all" is some strange gender myth that's as obsolete as it is embarrassing. Working parents are not new and unfortunately, neither are double standards.
But I'm not just talking about Garner's line of questioning — in what world is it okay to make a press junket an excuse to talk about another actress' breasts? If you've seen Gone Girl, you know that Ratajkowski's role is far more than just physical, so by asking Affleck about her body, her performance is also being undermined.
Ultimately: everybody is the worst. But they don't have to be. Listen to speeches by women like Garner, and listen to yourself saying things. (That goes for you, press junket-frequenting journalists.)
