Jennifer Garner | |
---|---|
Born | Jennifer Anne Garner April 17, 1972 |
Other names |
|
Alma mater | Denison University (BFA) |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1995–present |
Works | Full list |
Spouses | |
Partner | John C. Miller (2018-2020) (2021 - Present) |
Children | 3 |
Awards | Full list |
Jennifer Anne Garner (born April 17, 1972) is an American actress. Born in Houston, Texas, and raised in Charleston, West Virginia, Garner studied theater at Denison University and began acting as an understudy for the Roundabout Theatre Company in New York City. She made her screen debut in the television film adaptation of Danielle Steel's romance novel Zoya (1995). Afterwards, she had a starring role on the Fox teen drama series Time of Your Life (1999–2000), and supporting roles in the war drama film Pearl Harbor (2001) and the comedy-drama film Catch Me If You Can (2002). Her breakthrough came with playing Sydney Bristow in the ABC action thriller series Alias (2001–2006), which earned her a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and four Primetime Emmy Award nominations, among other accolades.
Garner received further recognition for her starring roles in the romantic comedies 13 Going on 30 (2004), Juno (2007), Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009) and Valentine's Day (2010), and for playing Elektra in the superhero films Daredevil (2003), Elektra (2005) and Deadpool & Wolverine (2024). She has starred in many independent films, including the biographical drama Dallas Buyers Club (2013). She also starred in the family comedies Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (2014), Love, Simon (2018), and Yes Day (2021), the action films Peppermint (2018) and The Adam Project (2022), and the Apple TV+ limited series The Last Thing He Told Me (2023).
Garner works as an activist for early childhood education and is a board member of Save the Children USA. She is the co-founder and chief brand officer of the organic baby food company Once Upon a Farm. She is also an advocate for anti-paparazzi campaigns among children of celebrities.
Jennifer Anne Garner was born on April 17, 1972, in Houston, Texas, but moved to Charleston, West Virginia, at age three. Her father, William John Garner, worked as a chemical engineer for Union Carbide; her mother, Patricia Ann English, was a homemaker and later an English teacher at a local college. [1] [2] She has two sisters. [3] [4] Garner has described herself as a typical middle child who sought to differentiate herself from her accomplished older sister. [5] [6] While Garner did not grow up in a politically active household, [7] her father was "very conservative" and her mother "quietly blue". [8] She attended a local United Methodist Church every Sunday and went to Vacation Bible School. [9] As teenagers, she and her sisters were not allowed to wear makeup, paint their nails, pierce their ears, or dye their hair; [10] [11] she has joked that her family's "take on the world" was "practically Amish". [12]
She attended George Washington High School in Charleston. [13] In 1990, Garner enrolled at Denison University in Granville, Ohio, [14] where she changed her major from chemistry to theater [15] and was a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority. [16] She spent the fall semester of 1993 studying at the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut. [17] During college summers, she worked summer stock theatre. [18] In 1994, she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in theater performance. [19]
As a college student, Garner performed in summer stock theatre. In addition to performing, Garner helped sell tickets, build sets, and clean the venues. [20] [21] She worked at the Timber Lake Playhouse in Mount Carroll, Illinois, in 1992, [22] the Barn Theatre in Augusta, Michigan, in 1993, [23] and the Georgia Shakespeare Festival in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1994. [24] Garner moved to New York City in 1995. [25] During her first year in the city, Garner earned $150 per week as an understudy for a Roundabout Theatre Company production of A Month in the Country [6] [26] and made her first on-screen appearance as Melissa Gilbert's daughter in the romance miniseries Zoya . [27] In 1996, she played an Amish woman in the television movie Harvest of Fire [28] and a shopkeeper in the Western miniseries Dead Man's Walk . [29] She appeared in the independent short film In Harm's Way [30] and made one-off appearances in Spin City , and the legal dramas Swift Justice and Law & Order . Garner also supplemented her income by working as a hostess at a restaurant on the Upper West Side, [31] as well as by doing some babysitting, specifically watching Madeleine Colbert, the daughter of Stephen and Evie Colbert. [32] [33]
After moving to Los Angeles in 1997, Garner gained her first leading role in the television film Rose Hill [34] and made her first feature film appearance in the period drama Washington Square . [35] She appeared in the comedy film Mr. Magoo , the independent drama 1999 and Woody Allen's Deconstructing Harry , though most of her performance was cut from the film. [36] In 1998, Garner appeared in an episode of Fantasy Island and was cast as a series regular in the Fox drama Significant Others , [37] but Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly thought there was "no center" to the character as played by Garner. [38] Fox canceled the series after airing three of six filmed episodes. Garner's most significant role of 1998 was in J. J. Abrams' college drama series Felicity . [39] In 1999, Garner was cast as a series regular in another Fox drama series, Time of Your Life , but it was canceled midway through the first season. [40] Also in 1999, she appeared in the miniseries Aftershock: Earthquake in New York and in two episodes of the action drama series The Pretender .
Garner played the girlfriend of Ashton Kutcher's character in the comedy Dude, Where's My Car? (2000). In 2001, she appeared briefly opposite her husband Foley in the drama Stealing Time and had a small role as a nurse in the war epic Pearl Harbor . [41] Also in 2001, Garner was cast as the star of the ABC action thriller series Alias . [1] The show's creator, J. J. Abrams, wrote the part of Sydney Bristow with Garner in mind. [42] [43] Alias aired for five seasons from 2001 to 2006; Garner's salary began at $40,000 per episode and rose to $150,000 per episode by the series' end. [44] During the show's run, Garner received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama (from four nominations) and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series (from two nominations), in addition to four nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
While Alias was airing, Garner continued to work in film intermittently. She had an "other-worldly" experience when Steven Spielberg called to offer her a role as a high-class call girl in the crime comedy-drama film Catch Me If You Can (2002). [45] After seeing her in Alias, Spielberg was sure that "she would be the next superstar". [46] She filmed her scene opposite Leonardo DiCaprio during a one-day shoot. [47] Garner's first co-starring film role was in the action superhero film Daredevil (2003), in which she played Elektra to Ben Affleck's Daredevil. [48] The physicality required for the role was something Garner had discovered "an aptitude for" through her work on Alias. [45] [49] Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times wrote that she "realizes Elektra more through movement than by way of her lumpy, obvious lines. She hasn't mastered the combat skill of tossing off bad material." [50] While Daredevil received mixed reviews, it was a box office success. [51] Also in 2003, she voiced herself in an episode of The Simpsons .
Garner's first leading film role, in the romantic comedy 13 Going on 30 (2004), was widely praised. She played a teenager who finds herself trapped in the body of a thirty-year-old. Garner chose Gary Winick to direct the film [52] and they continued to look for other projects to do together until his death in 2011. [53] [54] Manohla Dargis of the Los Angeles Times found her to be "startling": "Whenever she's on screen you don't want to look anywhere else." [55] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly called it an "utterly beguiling" performance, writing, "You can pinpoint the moment in it when Garner becomes a star." [56] Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post remarked: "Garner is clearly cut out to be America's next Sweetheart; she has the same magic mix of allure and accessibility that the job calls for." [57] 13 Going on 30 grossed $96 million worldwide. [58] Garner reprised the character of Elektra in the 2005 Daredevil spin-off film Elektra ; it was a box office and critical failure. [59] Claudia Puig of USA Today concluded that Garner "is far more appealing when she's playing charming and adorable, as she did so winningly in 13 Going on 30". [60] Garner next starred in the romantic drama Catch and Release . Although filmed in 2005 in between seasons of Alias, it was not released until early 2007 and failed to recoup its production budget. [61] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone praised Garner's ability "to blend charm and gravity" [62] but Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle felt that, while her "natural beauty and likability are still assets, [she] seems occasionally challenged by what should be an easy role". [63]
After a one-year break following the conclusion of Alias, her wedding to Affleck, and the birth of her first child, Garner returned to work in 2007. Her supporting role in Juno as a woman desperate to adopt a child was described by Kyle Buchanan of New York Magazine as a turning point in her career: "She came into the movie a steely figure, and left it as the mother you'd give your own child to ... Writer Diablo Cody and director Jason Reitman expertly deploy Garner's innate humanity as a trump card." [64] Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly said Garner had never "been lovelier or more affecting". [65] Also that same year, she played an FBI investigator in the action thriller The Kingdom . [66] [67] She was nursing her baby during filming in Arizona and was hospitalized on two occasions with heatstroke. [68]
In late 2007 and early 2008, Garner played Roxanne to Kevin Kline's Cyrano de Bergerac at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway. In preparation for the role, Garner worked with vocal and movement coaches and took French lessons. [26] Ben Brantley of The New York Times described her performance as "captivating": "Ms. Garner, I am pleased to report, makes Roxane a girl worth pining over ... [She] speaks Anthony Burgess's peppery rhymed translation with unaffected sprightliness. If she's a tad stilted in the big tragic finale, her comic timing is impeccable." [69] The New Yorker's theater critic was impressed by her "feistiness" and "lightness of comic touch". [70] The play was recorded before a live audience and aired on PBS in 2008. In 2007, Garner became a spokesperson of skin care brand Neutrogena. [71]
Garner co-starred in two romantic comedies in 2009. She first appeared in Ghosts of Girlfriends Past , portraying the childhood friend of a famous photographer and womanizer. While the film received lukewarm reviews, it grossed $102.2 million worldwide. [72] Michael Phillips of The Chicago Tribune found Garner "easy to like and sharp with her timing"; he was disappointed to see her as "the love interest, which is not the same as a rounded character". [73] Similarly, Manohla Dargis of The New York Times was dismayed to see Garner appear as "less a co-star than a place holder (you can almost see the words "enter generic female lead" in [the] screenplay)". [74]
Garner's second performance of 2009 was in comedian Ricky Gervais's directorial debut The Invention of Lying . Gervais was keen to cast Garner—"always happy and always pleasant to everyone"—against type. [75] In the film, she played the love interest of the first human with the ability to lie in a world where people can only tell the truth. Reviews for the movie were mixed and it made $32.4 million worldwide. [76] David Edelstein of New York Magazine said Garner "proves again (the first time was 13 Going on 30) what a dizzying comedienne she is. She looks as if the wheels in her head are not just turning but falling off and needing to be screwed back on," [77] while Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle said Garner "has never been better onscreen ... Garner gets to show a comic facility we haven't seen before." [78]
In Garry Marshall's ensemble romantic comedy Valentine's Day (2010), Garner shared scenes with Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Biel, and Patrick Dempsey. [79] The film made $56.2 million in its US opening weekend; it eventually grossed $110.4 million domestically and $216.4 million worldwide. [79] In 2011, she had a supporting role as a villainous deranged bride in the comedy Arthur , a remake of the 1981 film of the same name, directed by Jason Winer and co-starring Russell Brand and Helen Mirren. [80] [81]
Garner played a mother for the first time in 2012, [5] in the drama The Odd Life of Timothy Green , which followed a magical pre-adolescent boy whose personality and naïveté have profound effects on the people in his town. [82] The film received mixed reviews from critics and made a modest $56 million worldwide. [83] [84] Claudia Puig of USA Today found Garner "convincing as a warm-hearted, if tense, mom" [85] while Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune said she brought "fervent sincerity and a welcome touch of comic eccentricity" to the role. [86] That same year, Garner produced and starred in the satirical comedy Butter , in which she played an overly competitive and socially ambitious woman participating in a local butter sculpturing competition in a small Iowa town. Distributed for a limited release in certain parts of the United States only, Butter received mixed reviews and grossed $105,018. [87] [88] Peter Debruge of Variety praised "the best bigscreen use of Jennifer Garner's comedy gifts since 13 Going on 30". [89] while Peter Travers of Rolling Stone described her as the "best in show": "[She] knows how to play comedy of the absurd." [90] However, Scott Bowles of USA Today remarked: "Garner is a terrific actress, but here she's asked to cackle her lines in a voice a full octave above her natural one." [91] Also in 2012, she appeared in the YouTube short Serena, [92] and became a spokesperson for food company Luvo. [93]
Garner reunited with Matthew McConaughey in the 2013 biographical drama Dallas Buyers Club , portraying the role of a doctor treating AIDS patients in Texas during the mid-1980s. [94] [95] The film received significant acclaim and was a box office success. [96] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone described Garner as "a radiant actress of rare spirit and sensitivity" [97] and Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times said: "Garner is once again cast as a quintessentially decent, all-American girl, albeit a doctor. But the question of whether the actress has deeper emotional layers to bring to the screen is not answered here." [98] David Edelstein of New York magazine said: "It's not a well-shaped role, but I've gotten to the point where I'm happy to see Garner in anything. She's incapable of phoniness." [99] Also in 2013, Garner became the first celebrity spokesperson of the Italian fashion brand Max Mara. [100]
In 2014, Garner starred in the sports drama Draft Day , as the fictional salary cap analyst of the Cleveland Browns. Critical reception toward the film was mixed and Mick LaSalle of The San Francisco Chronicle, describing her part, remarked: "It's not much of a role, but she's perfectly nice in it. Perhaps someday someone will give Garner a chance to be something other than perfectly nice." [101] Garner also co-starred with Steve Carell in the 2014 Disney adaptation of the popular children's book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day , taking on the role of the mother of the titular character. The film grossed $101 million worldwide. [102] Sandie Angulo Chen of the Washington Post said: "Garner, who has long mastered the art of playing harried and overworked moms, is pleasantly frazzled." [103] Her other film role in 2014 was that of an overprotective mother in the dramedy Men, Women & Children , directed by Jason Reitman and co-starring Rosemarie DeWitt, Judy Greer, Dean Norris, and Adam Sandler. The film made $2.2 million worldwide, [104] and Christopher Orr of The Atlantic said: "Garner does what she can as the Snooping Mom from Hell, but ultimately it's not much. The role is like a caricature of her performance in Juno, minus the ultimate (and essential) redemption." [105] In late 2014, Capital One signed Garner as their spokesperson for their Capital One Venture Air Miles credit card. [106]
In 2015's Danny Collins , a drama inspired by the true story of folk singer Steve Tilston and starring Al Pacino and Annette Bening, Garner played the supporting role of the wife of Bobby Cannavale's character. The film was released in selected cinemas and was warmly received by critics; Stephanie Merry of The Washington Post felt Garner gave the movie "a powerful jolt of emotion". [107] In 2016, Garner appeared in the Christian drama Miracles from Heaven , playing the mother of a young girl who had a near-death experience and was later cured of an incurable disease. The film grossed $73.9 million worldwide [108] and received generally mixed reviews from critics, who felt it "makes the most out of an outstanding performance" from Garner. [109] Ken Jaworowski of The New York Times praised a "dedicated" and "heartfelt" performance, [110] while Nigel Smith of The Guardian found "her subtly wrought work ... tremendously effective" in an otherwise "crassly manipulative" film. [111] Also in 2016, Garner starred in the critically panned comedy Nine Lives , playing the second wife of a workaholic father who has his mind trapped inside of his daughter's new cat. Garner made an uncredited cameo appearance in Mother's Day (2016).
Garner appeared in the drama Wakefield , which premiered at TIFF and was released in May 2017. [112] Also in 2017, she starred in The Tribes of Palos Verdes , and in friend Judy Greer's directorial debut A Happening of Monumental Proportions . [113] [114] In 2018, she co-starred in Love, Simon , an adaptation of the young-adult novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda . [115] Also that year, Garner voiced the role of Mama Llama for Netflix's original animated preschool series Llama Llama , and starred as the lead in the action-revenge film Peppermint , which was released on September 7. [116]
In August 2018, Garner was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. [117] Variety praised her "radiant likability" and said she was second only to Tom Hanks. [118] Also in 2018, she had a leading role in the HBO comedy series Camping , which was based on the British television series of the same name.
In 2020, Garner starred in the Quibi comedy miniseries Home Movie: The Princess Bride , a "fan made" recreation of the 1987 film of the same name produced in social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Filmed in a deliberately DIY fashion, it was created to raise money for World Central Kitchen. [119] She also produced and starred in the Netflix family comedy film Yes Day , directed by Miguel Arteta and released in March 2021. [120] [121]
In 2022, Garner starred in the science fiction action film The Adam Project , which reunited her with her 13 Going on 30 co-star Mark Ruffalo. That same year, she made a guest appearance in an episode of the Amazon Prime Video science fiction comedy series Upload .
In 2023, she appeared as a series regular in the revival of the Starz sitcom Party Down . [122] Also that year, Garner executive produced and starred as Hannah Hall in the Apple TV+ limited mystery drama series The Last Thing He Told Me , which is based on the novel of the same name. [123]
Garner starred as Jess Walker in the family comedy film Family Switch , which was released on Netflix in November 2023. Also that year, it was revealed that Garner would reprise her role as Elektra Natchios in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Deadpool & Wolverine , which was released on July 26, 2024. [124]
In a 2002 episode of the action thriller series Alias , titled "Rendezvous", Garner sang a version of the song "Since I Fell For You", to which she wrote her own lyrics. She also sang "My Funny Valentine" when hosting a 2003 episode of the sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , on which Beck was the musical guest; she was not credited for either performance. Garner was one of the fourteen actors, not generally known for singing, who participated in the compilation album Unexpected Dreams – Songs from the Stars , released on April 4, 2006, on which album she sang a solo version of "My Heart Is So Full Of You", from Frank Loesser's The Most Happy Fella ; the original version had been a duet. Victor Garber, who she co-starred with in Alias, was another such actor on the same compilation album. In 2016, Garner sang "Doin' It (All for My Baby)" in the Garry Marshall comedy-drama Mother's Day , and in 2021, she interpreted the Four Tops's 1964 chart selection "Baby I Need Your Loving" in the family comedy Yes Day . [125]
In 2009, Garner became an artist ambassador for Save the Children USA, promoting national literacy, nutrition, and early education efforts. [126] [127] Since 2014, [128] Garner has served on the board of trustees for the organization, [129] [130] [131] advocating for early childhood education. [132] As an ambassador, she frequently visits with families involved in the organization's Early Steps to School Success program, which coaches families to help children learn in the early years. [133]
In 2011, Garner partnered with Frigidaire as part of her work with Save the Children. [134] In 2013, Garner took her eldest daughter Violet to a Save the Children gala in New York: "My husband and I have never taken our kids to a public event before, but I brought my daughter Violet, because ... I want her to see the passionate commitment Mark Shriver and Hillary Clinton have to make the world a better place for everyone." [135] In 2014, she joined the Invest in Us campaign. [130] In 2015, she appeared in A Path Appears, a PBS documentary that focuses on rural poverty among children in West Virginia. [136]
In 2002, Garner filmed a 30-second television advertisement for her childhood friend Corey Palumbo, who was running as a Democratic candidate for the West Virginia House of Delegates. [137] In 2006, she spoke at a rally in support of Democratic congressional candidate Jerry McNerney in Pleasanton, California. [138] In 2007, Garner said she was "not a particularly outwardly political person". [68] Also in 2007, she appeared in a global warming awareness video produced by the Center for American Progress Action Fund. [139]
In 2008, she hosted two fund-raisers for Barack Obama during the 2008 Democratic Primary. [140] [141] In 2014, Garner donated $25,000 to the campaign of Democratic politician Wendy Davis. [142] During the 2016 presidential campaign, Garner hosted a fundraiser in support of Hillary Clinton in Bozeman, Montana. [143] Garner also attended voter registration and phone bank events in support of Clinton in Reno, Nevada. [144]
Garner has campaigned for laws to protect her children from paparazzi, stating in 2013: "There's an idea that because our pictures are everywhere that we are complicit in it. When really what happens is they're waiting outside our door every single day." [145] In August 2013, Garner testified before the California Assembly Judiciary Committee in support of a bill that would protect celebrities' children from harassment by photographers. [146] Her six-year-old daughter made a speech about her personal experiences at a private event in support of the bill. [147] The bill passed in September 2013 and is now California law. [148] While photographs of children may still be taken, behavior which "seriously alarms, annoys, torments, or terrorizes" children is illegal, as is "lying in wait" outside their various activities. [149] In 2014, her then-husband Affleck argued in favor of a United Kingdom-style system, where "you have to blur out the face[s]" of minor children in published photographs. [150] In 2014, Garner spoke in support of the "No Kids" policy, which was adopted by many media organizations and forbids publication of photos of celebrities' children. She described the paparazzi interest as "gross": "Our hope is maybe our kids won't be so recognizable in a few years." [151] [152]
In 2019, Garner reflected on "a solid decade where there were five or six cars minimum, and easily up to 15 or 20 on the weekends, outside of my house at all times". While she said the situation had improved since the legislation was passed, she noted that "seven or eight" photographers still regularly wait outside her children's school to photograph them from a distance and that she sometimes requires police assistance when they get too close. [153]
Garner and John Foraker co-founded the organic, fresh baby food company Once Upon a Farm in 2018; Garner is also the company's chief brand officer. In 2019, Once Upon a Farm became the first refrigerated baby food available to WIC-eligible families. [154]
In partnership with Save the Children, Garner and her team remain dedicated to bringing 'A Million Meals' to children across America in food insecure communities. [155]
Garner is a part of the ownership group of Angel City FC of the National Women's Soccer League. [156]
Garner met co-star Scott Foley on the set of Felicity in 1998. [1] They married in a ceremony at their home on October 19, 2000. The pair separated in March 2003. [157] Garner filed for divorce in May 2003, citing irreconcilable differences, and divorce papers were signed in March 2004. [158] [159] She dated her Alias co-star Michael Vartan from August 2003 to mid-2004. [160] [161]
Garner began dating Ben Affleck in August 2004, [162] having established a friendship on the sets of Pearl Harbor (2001) and Daredevil (2003). [163] They married on June 29, 2005, in a private Turks and Caicos ceremony. [164] Victor Garber, who officiated the ceremony, and his (later) husband, Rainer Andreesen, were the only guests. [165] Garner and Affleck have three children together: Violet Anne Affleck (born in 2005), Fin Affleck, [166] and Samuel Garner Affleck. [167] The couple announced their intention to divorce in June 2015, [168] and jointly filed legal documents in April 2017, seeking joint physical and legal custody of their children. [169] The divorce was finalized in October 2018. [170] [171] Garner supported Affleck's struggles with alcoholism during and after their marriage and has credited Al-Anon with changing "the dance" of their relationship. [172] She previously used the surnames Foley and Affleck during her marriages to Scott Foley and Ben Affleck, respectively. [173] [174]
She dated businessman John C. Miller from mid-2018 to early 2020. [175] [176] [177] After splitting up for a year, Garner and Miller's relationship would resume in 2021. [178] [179]
Although Garner stopped attending church regularly after moving to Los Angeles, [180] her three children were baptized as members of the United Methodist Church in her hometown of Charleston, West Virginia. [9] In 2015, she and her family began attending weekly Methodist church services in Los Angeles. [9]
Garner was stalked by Steven Burky from 2002 to 2003, and again from 2008 to 2009. Garner, her then-husband Affleck, and their daughter Violet obtained a restraining order in 2008. [181] Burky was arrested in December 2009 outside Violet's preschool. [182] He was charged with two counts of stalking, to which he pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. In March 2010, he was adjudicated insane, sent to California's state mental hospital, and ordered to stay away from the Garner-Affleck family for 10 years if released. [183]
Jennifer Lynn Affleck, also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American actress, singer, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential Latin entertainers of her time, credited with breaking barriers for Latino Americans in Hollywood and helping propel the Latin pop movement in music. She is also noted for her impact on popular culture through fashion, branding, and shifting mainstream beauty standards.
Jennifer Joanna Aniston is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom Friends from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild awards. Since her career progressed in the 1990s, Aniston has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid actresses, as of 2023.
Benjamin Géza Affleck is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and three Golden Globes. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS educational series The Voyage of the Mimi (1984–1988). He later appeared in the independent comedy Dazed and Confused (1993) and several Kevin Smith comedies, including Chasing Amy (1997).
Matthew Paige Damon is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. He was ranked among Forbes' most bankable stars in 2007, and in 2010 was one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He has received various awards and nominations, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards and seven Primetime Emmy Awards.
Victor Garber, is a Canadian stage and film actor and singer. Known for his work on stage and screen, he has been nominated for three Gemini Awards, four Tony Awards, and six Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2022, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
Annette Carol Bening is an American actress. With a career spanning over four decades, she is known for her versatile work across screen and stage. Bening has received numerous accolades, including a BAFTA Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and nominations for five Academy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award and two Tony Awards, making her one of few artists nominated for the Triple Crown of Acting without winning.
Jennifer Grey is an American actress. She made her acting debut with the film Reckless (1984), and had her breakthrough with the teen comedy film Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986). She subsequently earned worldwide fame for starring as Frances "Baby" Houseman in the romantic drama film Dirty Dancing (1987), which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination. Her other feature films include Red Dawn (1984), The Cotton Club (1984), Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989), Bounce (2000), Redbelt (2008), The Wind Rises (2013), In Your Eyes (2014), Duck Duck Goose (2018), and Bittersweet Symphony (2019).
Casey Affleck is an American actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. The younger brother of actor Ben Affleck, he began his career as a child actor, appearing in the PBS television film Lemon Sky (1988). He later appeared in three Gus Van Sant films: To Die For (1995), Good Will Hunting (1997), Gerry (2002), and in Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's film series (2001–2007). His first leading role was in Steve Buscemi's independent comedy-drama Lonesome Jim (2006).
Daredevil is a 2003 American superhero film written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name created by Stan Lee and Bill Everett. The film stars Ben Affleck as Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer who fights for justice in the courtroom and on the streets of New York as the masked vigilante Daredevil. Jennifer Garner, Michael Clarke Duncan, Colin Farrell, Joe Pantoliano, Jon Favreau, and David Keith also star in supporting roles.
Elektra is a 2005 superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Elektra Natchios and directed by Rob Bowman. It is a spin-off from the film Daredevil (2003), with Jennifer Garner reprising her role as the titular character. The story follows Elektra, an assassin who must protect a man and his prodigy daughter from another assassin who was hired by the Hand. Goran Višnjić, Will Yun Lee, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, and Terence Stamp also star.
Mary Elle Fanning is an American actress. She made her film debut as a child as the younger version of her sister Dakota Fanning's character in the drama film I Am Sam (2001). She appeared in several other films as a child actress, including Daddy Day Care (2003), Babel (2006), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Phoebe in Wonderland, and the miniseries The Lost Room (2006). She then had leading roles in Sofia Coppola's drama Somewhere (2010) and J. J. Abrams' science fiction film Super 8 (2011).
Zoë Yadira Saldaña-Perego is an American actress. Known primarily for her work in science fiction film franchises, she has starred in four of the highest-grossing films of all time. Films she has appeared in have grossed more than $15 billion worldwide and, as of 2024, she is the second highest-grossing film actress. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.
Jennifer Coolidge is an American character actress who has appeared in films and television, primarily in the comedy genre. Coolidge is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2023, Coolidge was named by Time magazine as one of its 100 most influential people in the world.
Euphemia LatiQue"Tika" Sumpter is an American actress and producer. Sumpter began her career as the host of Best Friend's Date. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap opera One Life to Live. In 2010, she made her film debut in Stomp the Yard: Homecoming and later featured in supporting roles for What's Your Number? (2011), Sparkle (2012), and A Madea Christmas (2013).
Jennifer Shrader Lawrence is an American actress and producer. Lawrence is known for starring in both action film franchises and independent dramas, and her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide. The world's highest-paid actress in 2015 and 2016, she appeared in Time's 100 most influential people in the world list in 2013 and the Forbes Celebrity 100 list from 2013 to 2016.
Anna Cooke Kendrick is an American actress. Her first starring role was in the 1998 Broadway musical High Society, for which she earned a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. She made her film debut in the musical comedy Camp (2003) and had a supporting role in The Twilight Saga (2008–2011). She achieved wider recognition for the comedy-drama film Up in the Air (2009), which earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and for her starring role in the Pitch Perfect film series (2012–2017).
Bennifer and Bennifer 2.0 are the names given by the media to the high-profile relationship between American actor and filmmaker Ben Affleck and American singer Jennifer Lopez. The pair had a widely publicized 18-month romance from 2002 to 2004, and were engaged to be married. After their breakup, they maintained a friendship. They rekindled their romantic relationship in early 2021 and got married in July 2022. However, Lopez filed for divorce after only two years, on August 20, 2024. They have starred in two films together, Gigli (2003) and Jersey Girl (2004), and appeared in two music videos together, "Jenny from the Block" (2002) and "Marry Me" (2022).
Julia Garner is an American actress. She is best known for her starring role as Ruth Langmore in the Netflix crime drama series Ozark (2017–2022), for which she received critical acclaim and won three Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series and a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.
American actor and filmmaker Ben Affleck began his career as a child, appearing in several television shows, including the PBS educational program The Voyage of the Mimi (1984). He played an antisemite in the sports film School Ties (1992) and featured as a regular on the television drama Against the Grain (1993). He gained attention for playing the supporting part of a high-school senior in Richard Linklater's cult film Dazed and Confused (1993), after which he had his first leading role in Rich Wilkes's comedy Glory Daze (1995). In 1997, Affleck played a comics artist in Smith's art-house success Chasing Amy. He co-wrote the script and starred with Matt Damon in Gus Van Sant's drama film Good Will Hunting, for which they won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
Live by Night is a 2016 American crime drama film written, directed, produced by and starring Ben Affleck. Based on the 2012 novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane, the film follows an ambitious Ybor City bootlegger (Affleck) who becomes a notorious gangster. The film also stars Elle Fanning, Brendan Gleeson, Chris Messina, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldaña, and Chris Cooper.