Jessica Alba has never wanted to play the girl next door off screen. The Dear Eleanor actress opened up about identifying more with her masculine side in Cosmopolitan magazine’s March issue.
“I was kind of aggressive and super masculine in my early 20s — even into my mid-20s. I got boobs when I was young … and I was like, ‘What do I do? I was never the girl who they marketed. I was always feeling angry, like an imposter. I learned how to be cool with the feminine later in life,” Alba, 34, explains. “I always wanted to be a big action star, to be as relevant as men. I was very aggressive with the vision and manifesting it.”
The mom of two fulfilled her action heroine dream when she played Max Guevera in Dark Angel from 2000 to 2002. She also kicked butt in 2005 movies such as Fantastic Four, Sin City and Into the Blue. But outside of acting, she’s just as tough.
“I’m in a man’s world in business. But I know what women want — [men] don’t,” the Honest Company cofounder tells the mag. “Whenever [male colleagues] question me in meetings, I’m like, ‘Go home and ask your wife. This is a pointless conversation. Go home and talk to her.’ When we were talking about package designs, I was like, ‘Are you really giving me notes on packaging for feminine care? I literally can’t with you.'”
Alba’s successful company, which produces non-toxic household products, debuted in 2011. Some celebrity fans include Blake Lively and Jaime King.
Alba is passionate about having more gender equality in the workplace, too. “There are not as many women in government titles, business titles. It’s just not equal. And until there is equality, you’re going to feel that no matter what industry you’re in,” she says. “But from day one, I was like, girls should have an equal seat at the table. Take Jennifer Lawrence. I mean, she’s opening movies — she’s the box office draw as much as any guy in the movie, if not more. She should be compensated for that.”
As previously reported, Lawrence wrote about getting paid less than her male American Hustle costars last October. The Oscar winner revealed that she “failed as a negotiator” and earned 7 percent of the profits compared to 9 percent, which Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale and Jeremy Renner reportedly made.
