Jennifer Garner is looking back at one of Hollywood’s biggest lessons: sometimes the role you lose is the one that leads you exactly where you need to be.
The 54-year-old actress opened up about rejection during an appearance on Aspire with Emma Grede, admitting that even after decades in the business, hearing “no” never becomes completely painless.
“Do you know how many auditions or meetings I’ve gone on that I’ve gotten down to here, to here, and not gotten?” she asked.
Garner said actors can pour everything into a project, only to watch it “lie there on the floor” after finally getting the part.
“I loved you. I thought you were great.”
Still, Garner believes she has developed some serious bounce-back skills.
Her biggest example? Losing a role on The West Wing — a job she desperately wanted.
“I always think back to this audition for The West Wing. It was for a new role and God, I wanted it so badly. And I got down and I tested for it. And when I didn’t get it, I had to like, go to the desert,” she recalled.
After spending time alone in Palm Springs, Garner got an unexpected career-changing call.
“And then, like two weeks later, Alias came to me,” she said.
“So what is it? Rejection is God’s protection? Whatever that is, I’m all for that. Let’s believe that, you know? Let’s go with that.”
Alias ultimately became Garner’s breakthrough, with the actress playing Sydney Bristow for five seasons from 2001 to 2006.
Two decades later, she still gets emotional thinking about the series finale.
“It was so emotional. I’ve never been able to watch the last episode because Victor’s character dies and I just can’t see it. I can’t even see it,” Garner admitted.
Sometimes, it seems, Hollywood’s “no” really is just a very dramatic “not yet.”
