July 22, 2026, 6:34 p.m. ET
Jennifer Garner said life under the paparazzi took an unexpected toll on her family and put others around them at risk.
“It was a danger to everyone around us,” the actress, 54, said on the July 21 episode of “Shut Up Evan.”
Garner reflected on the emotional toll of raising her three children with ex-husband Ben Affleck — Violet, 20; Fin, 17; and Samuel, 14 — while they grew up in the public eye.
She said at the time, photographers’ relentless pursuit of celebrities and their families had become “totally ludicrous” before California strengthened protections for the children of public figures in 2013. The law, backed by Garner and Halle Berry, increased penalties for aggressively harassing or photographing minors because of their parents’ occupations and allows parents to pursue civil damages against violators.
“If I went through a yellow light, 15 cars would go through the red behind me. They would drive up onto people’s lawns, even on a hillside,” Garner recalled. “We were trying to have our little one play soccer, and the association asked us to stop because there were 20 cars coming.”
She said the frenzy became so extreme that it created safety risks for her family and everyone nearby.
“If you show up and you’re trying to get into the pediatrician and you have a sick kid on your shoulder and you’re scared and you can’t get into the door because you’re blocked by photographers, there’s something wrong with that,” Garner said. “The kids are paying the price. Kids were getting knocked over coming out of preschool by photographers who were so hungry to get to me or to Ben.”
Though her children are much older, Garner said photographers remain a constant presence that she continues to navigate. The “13 Going on 30” star revealed she has developed an “interesting relationship” with two paparazzi who have been “assigned” to follow her for more than two decades.
“We’ve had some really real-life moments together,” she said, recalling one incident when she ran toward a longtime photographer because she trusted him while fearing someone else might hurt her. “There’s kind of a Stockholm syndrome thing.”
Garner recently reflected on the challenges of living in the public eye. While promoting her new Peacock series “The Five-Star Weekend,” she told USA TODAY that she has “been around the block for a long time” and said that, like her character Hollis, she’s learned to lean on friends while navigating difficult moments in the spotlight.
“I can tell you, Hollis has it right: You call your friends,” she said.
