I feel like I see new photos of Jessica Alba every other day, almost all of them “candids” – like, Alba and Honor going to the doctor, Alba and Honor playing in the park, Alba and Honor walking down the street. It is my belief that Alba is trying to work out the same kind of “Every Mom” likeability that Jennifer Garner has and maintains through her endless candid photo shoots with her daughters. The problem? No one really gives a crap about Jessica Alba. Most people aren’t even interested in her second pregnancy, which has to be a big letdown for Alba. After she gave birth to Honor, she gave lots of interviews about how her body was ruined, and she often came across like she was martyring herself, all for motherhood (and public adulation). It was kind of funny. Anyway, Alba covers the new issue of Latina Magazine, and she’s once again trying to get us interested in anything having to do with her bump. Oddly enough, I find her comments about race to be the most interesting things:
On preparing for her second child: “The first time around, every moment was so new and terrifying and now I know what to expect. It’s like ‘It’s fine, I’ve been there before.’ With Honor, I was constantly asking myself ‘Is she moving? Is her heart beating?’ I’d worry about everything, and with this baby I don’t have the same anxieties.”
On balancing motherhood & her career: “After I had Honor I didn’t leave the house for a while. It was all about changing diapers and feedings and still trying to get back in to the routine of my [acting] thing. I love what I do. But unless it’s worth it, I’m not going to spend time away from my daughter. Before I had her, work was all I had. Now it’s not.”
On the possibility of more kids: “I just have to feel it out,” she says with a wink. “See how my 30s treat me. I just try to live in the moment.”
On showing off your shape: “If you are sporting a pregnant belly, it’s better to show it than to hide it. If you look in the mirror and you look really wide and frumpy, then you’re going to appear really wide and frumpy. The more figure forming your clothes, even though you have more curves, the better. I like long, thin sweaters that kind of hide my hips and my booty, so there’s not a huge emphasis on how big they’re getting.”
On her insecurities: “I was a lot more insecure when I was younger. I was very sensitive to criticism. Now I’m definitely a lot more self-assured.” In 2008, she told Latina: “All of the stuff I got made fun of as a kid– bubble butt, fish lips, the dark skin – I’m proud of now.”
On landing her breakthrough role: “I certainly knew the significance of Dark Angel because I knew how difficult it was just to get to that point. A lot of people didn’t even give me a chance based on how racially ambiguous I looked.”
On studying Spanish: “I’ve definitely considered moving to a Spanish-speaking country for a little while, even if it’s just a month or two, because I think at the end of the day that’s how you really learn.”
[From Latina]
What the hell? “A lot of people didn’t even give me a chance based on how racially ambiguous I looked.” Um… no. I don’t understand that at all – it’s like she’s trying to say that she doesn’t look like she’s Hispanic (like looking Hispanic is some kind affliction), but that she’s still the Victim of Cruel, Racist Hollywood – even though she doesn’t look “ethnic” (in her mind). Trying to follow this ridiculous logic is mind-numbing. Perhaps Alba is just trying to explain why no one wants to work with a marginally talented actress who thinks that because she’s so amazing, she gets to make up her own lines in any script?
By the way, going back to the race thing – Alba has gotten in trouble (foot in mouth trouble) for talking about her Mexican roots before. In 2007, she talked about how she didn’t self-identify as “Latina” (ironic, considering this magazine interview), and she said in part, “Alba is my last name and I’m proud of that. But that’s it. My grandparents were born in California, the same as my parents, and though I may be proud of my last name, I’m American. Throughout my whole life, I’ve never felt connected to one particular race or heritage, nor did I feel accepted by any. If you break it down, I’m less Latina than Cameron Diaz, whose father is Cuban. But people don’t call her Latina because she’s blonde.” You can read more from that 2007 interview here.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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