Sitting in a sun-drenched room in her California home, Jennifer Garner’s face lights up at the mention of two words: suncare. Peruse any online interview with the actress and you’ll find her age and her go-to sunscreen products listed right next to her name. We’re all fascinated by how Garner maintains her youthful glow, and she’s passionate about the skincare category, which produces results we could never hope to replicate. For the next 20 minutes, she waxes poetic about the sunscreen formulas she uses with the insightful tone of a mother imparting wisdom, speaking with the expertise of a trained dermatologist, not a paid spokesperson. But she teeth A mother of three to be exact, who keeps sunscreen in her car door to wipe her hands while driving (safely, of course) and, you guessed it, keeps a sunscreen mist in her bag to wipe her face.
Sunscreen is Garner’s number one skincare non-negotiable, and it’s the cornerstone of her partnership with Neutrogena, which began in 2007. Every year, the mission remains the same: to support melanoma awareness and prevention. “After 17 years of speaking about melanoma during Melanoma Awareness Month, it’s definitely educational,” she jokes. Her curiosity to learn more about skin cancer led her to visit Neutrogena dermatologists and researchers to get all the answers to her questions.
“What’s the most effective way to put sunscreen on your skin and face? What are the barriers between people knowing they should put sunscreen on and actually putting it on? And how do we remove those barriers?” Garner recalls asking the experts. In its seven-year relationship with the Melanoma Research Foundation, Neutrogena has donated more than $1 million to continue its education efforts and raise awareness of skin cancer. But both Garner and Neutrogena know that their efforts are only as good as their stories, and TikTok is the fastest way to get the news to a younger generation.
“[Suncare] “TikTok is taking us backwards. Almost half of Gen Z believe that tanning is better than sunscreen or that base tanning will protect them from sunburn. But these aren’t true. Tanning is damage from the sun. Think of toast: when you put bread in the toaster and it toasts, it becomes toast. Sure it’s crispy and delicious, but the outer layer of the bread is damaged,” she explains.
never mind that Bread. Garner opens up about her sun-protection routine, her favorite products, and why she’s so obsessed with anti-aging.
How much did you know about melanoma before you started working at Neutrogena, and what have you discovered in your research?
Growing up, my dad loved sailing. We didn’t have a fancy yacht, but we did have a 23-foot yacht, and five of us went on that boat out on the Chesapeake Bay for three weeks. It was about a nine-hour drive from home. When you’re on a boat, you’re pretty much in the sun because there’s nowhere to go. Luckily, my mom is a big fan of sunscreen, and we grew up being pretty conscious of the sun, and we were big fans of Neutrogena. That’s how I ended up working with Neutrogena, because I used their serums as a kid. I have two sisters, and we would fight over the serums. Even my dad used them. I knew how to protect myself from the sun as a kid.
[With too much sun exposure]You’re doing irreparable damage to your skin. The burns may heal and become less noticeable, but they increase your chances of getting skin cancer. So we have to take this more seriously and say: I don’t want to get skin cancer when I’m older. Skin cancer is preventable; all we have to do is protect ourselves from the sun, and with Neutrogena there are lots of easy ways to make that happen.
How do you incorporate sun care into your skincare routine?
First, I always keep sunscreen on the door of my car. If my kids are about to run off and I realize I didn’t put sunscreen on at home, I can put it on when they leave for school. I treat this like brushing my teeth. I don’t question it every day, even if it’s the middle of winter and I’m going to be inside all day. Do I need sunscreen? You just put it on. It’s on your skin whether you need it or not. I might up my SPF and reapply more frequently during the summer, as I’ll be starting to do now, but wearing sunscreen on my face, body, and of course my neck and décolleté is a non-negotiable for me.
I use [the] The Ultra Sheer Moisturizing Face Serum is great as a primer too. It’s moisturizing, a great base for makeup, and leaves skin feeling smooth. For the body, I usually start with the Dry Touch, which is exactly what it sounds like – a dry touch lotion that doesn’t leave you feeling oily at all and absorbs deep into the skin. If I’m out and about, I’ll use the Ultra Sheer Mist or a spray like the Beach Defense Spray. Otherwise, the mist is super gentle on the skin and absorbs quickly. It doesn’t get on your clothes. You don’t have to rub it in. It leaves a slightly moisturized feeling. These are my favorites.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Lightweight Hydrating Facial Cleansing Gel
Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Moisturizing Face Serum
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Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Water Cream
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Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist SPF 70
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Neutrogena Beach Defense Water Resistant Face & Body SPF 70
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Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Retinol Pro+ Anti-Wrinkle Night Moisturizer
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How does your routine change as the warmer weather arrives?
I always alternate between that and Neutrogena’s retinol line, Rapid Wrinkle Repair. Retinol transforms your skin. That’s all. I like to alternate between the serum, lotion, and nighttime eye cream from the Rapid Wrinkle Repair line. I never thought you could use retinol so close to your eyes, but it’s been thoroughly tested. All it does is stimulate skin cell turnover and increase new skin cells. On the other hand, I love the whole Hydro Boost line because hyaluronic acid is the flip side of it. Hyaluronic acid binds moisture to the surface of the skin. When your skin is hydrated like when you were young and beautiful, it plumps up and your skin is bouncy and perky and beautiful. When you’re in your 50s like me, you have to work harder to get moisture. One of the best ways to do that is with hyaluronic acid.
We live in a youth-obsessed culture and everyone is chasing this anti-aging thing. What are your thoughts on the debate around aging?
Aging has a negative connotation, but isn’t aging a gift? Anti-aging is not a great outcome. We all want to age. The best case scenario is that we age because we can’t stay 25, 35, 45 years old. Aging will continue unless we stop, and that’s not what I want to do. I want to keep going. I want to enjoy life. I don’t want to blame myself for where I am on the spectrum of my life cycle. I want to love it. There are so many good things to gain from getting older. You learn what is important, what to let go, and how to be present and really listen to the people around you. If you have children, you can have long relationships with your friends, companions, loved ones, and your children. If you have interesting children, even better. What more can you ask for? I don’t see the benefit in trying to avoid anti-aging and focusing on superficial things.
The thing is, with kids, you don’t need retinol. You need sunscreen, which is anti-aging, sun protection.
Speaking of Gen-Z and TikTok, everyone is sharing their “unsexy” products. What about you?
I think that’s pretty much it. [all] My products are kind of unsexy. I don’t think spraying sunscreen mist on your body is super sexy, but it feels kind of dewy, so it’s kind of sexy. And then retinol, I wouldn’t say retinol is the sexiest thing in the world.
It’s been 20 years since 13 Going On 30. What advice would you give to 13-year-old Jennifer?
I would tell 13-year-old Jennifer that if she was assigned a book in class, she should read it through to the end, not just skim it so she can answer the questions that day. [that] If you don’t put in the effort, you don’t get anything. As I grew older, I began to believe and strive to believe that everything will work out if you just do it the right way. There are a few things I worked hard for at age 13: I was a dedicated babysitter, a dedicated ballet student, and a serious creative writer. But if I could go back in time, I would take this notion that everything will work out if you just do it the right way and apply it to that little kid who thought: You can accept this or reject it. No, actually do it all. Be thorough.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
