She’s just being honest! Jessica Alba isn’t shy when it comes to how she feels about comparisons between herself and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Alba, 34, thinks the played-out contrast between The Honest Company and Goop is sexist. “What I think is unfair is to lump actresses together,” the co-founder of The Honest Company told Allure in the September issue. “People aren’t lumping Justin Timberlake and Ashton Kutcher together. They do other businesses. I think it’s expected that when you get success in one area, you’re supposed to evolve and try to do something else—especially in business, and especially if you’re a man.”
In fact, the actress-turned-business woman, seemed frustrated by sexism in general, even apart from the unrelated comparisons to Paltrow. “Women are freaking resilient,” she said of the lack of well-rounded roles for women in film. “I never wanted to play into a stereotype, where it’s like, ‘Oh, you’re just the girl who gets saved by the guy,’ and she doesn’t know how to make decisions, and she gets overwhelmed with all this stuff happening around her.”
Alba is also careful about choosing how much skin to show in films. “If there’s a role where I feel comfortable doing that, sure,” she said. “It’s just I never felt like being naked was going to make the movie any better. If anything, it was just going to exploit me for no reason.”
The mom to Honor, 7, and Haven, 4, actually talks about acting in the past tense now, revealing that taking the Santa Monica-based Honest Company to new heights with makeup and skin care is her focus now (despite a brush with online criticism over the effectiveness of newly launched sunscreens). “I’ve always been on my own path,” Alba said.
Whatever she’s doing, it’s clear that she leans on husband of 11 years and producer Cash Warren for support. “It wouldn’t really be possible without him. He helped me put together my initial business plan. He was always my biggest cheerleader,” she said. “Having someone who genuinely has your back, no matter what, there’s nothing like that… It’s a real unconditional love… The partner that you choose to go through life with you, that’s your chosen family.”
What do you think of Alba’s stance on the comparisons to Paltrow? Tweet with @UsWeekly using the hashtag #stylebyUs!
