I was going to skip covering this premiere until something occurred to me. Check out the photo that Jennifer Garner used to mark her return to Instagram after driving her ex, Ben Affleck, to rehab and working out the details of her divorce with him. She was quiet for a few days (at least publicly) until that story died down, and then she posted this. The photo is from the premiere of her movie, Peppermint, which is out on September 7. Jen plays a vigilante mom who trains to get revenge after the courts fail to bring her family’s murderer to justice. (I’m here for an “older” woman as action hero, however this film is getting criticism for featuring a white savior character killing brown people in a minority neighborhood, at least according to the trailer. If people choose to skip it for that reason, that’s completely understandable.)
It’s very deliberate that Jen is posing in the middle of wings made up of colorful bullets. This reminds me of her interview with Vanity Fair in 2016, when she got the cover after Ben’s nanny scandal. She gave this interview before it was confirmed that Ben’s giant back tattoo was real. (He initially called it fake for Live By Night, even after Garner said this.)
You know what we would say in my hometown about that? ‘Bless his heart.’ A phoenix rising from the ashes. Am I the ashes in this scenario? I take umbrage. I refuse to be the ashes.
As I wrote on Instagram, it’s no coincidence that the art for Peppermint features giant wings behind Jen’s character.
This promotional image for Peppermint has been out for some time and I missed this until seeing the premiere photos. (Also, this is Photoshopped poorly.)
In terms of her fashion, at least she’s mixing it up and this isn’t as staid as we usually see from her. Jen could do better than this wrinkled Narciso Rodriguez black mullet dress with a cape-like train. Her hair and makeup are gorgeous though.
This is Annie Ilonzeh. I’m not familiar with her, but she was on Empire in 2016 and Person of Interest from 2015 to 2016. Holy crap this dress! It’s by designer Rami Kadi and while I’m not a fan of the deep v-neck, I think those are overused in general, the skirt is amazing. At first I thought it was made up of separate rainbow pieces but they’re rainbow stripes mixed with sheer stripes and the result is so striking. We’ll be seeing more of her.
There are some hot dudes in this film. From left to right this is Juan Pablo Raba, director Pierre Morel, Jennifer Garner, John Ortiz, Annie Ilonzeh and John Boyd.
Here are a couple of Garner’s Instagram story posts from the premiere. (There are about two more.) She’s good about thanking her entire team.
Photos credit: WENN and Instagram/Jennifer Garner
She looks great here.
I agree, she looks fantastic.
She does, she looks really beautiful. I love her hair.
I like the pic of her with her team getting ready for the premier
Yeah, I’m just not here right now for white suburban saviour fights the evil Latinos. Now’s…not the time. Sigh. I didn’t catch the wings/ashes thing. Deliberate or not, that’s funny.
Her dress is fine but for me she’s 100% outdone by that dress on Annie Ilonzeh. Damn! I love that dress, it is beyond cool.
Did you see the extended trailer? Yes she goes after what appears to be Latino gang members. but also the white judge and the white cops, and pretty much the whole white corrupt system.
That doesn’t make it better for me. I don’t understand these films. It’s violence/revenge porn with a completely unbelievable premise of a housewife turned amateur killer. I heard magnificent things about the Keanu Reeves films (John Wick I think) and could not bring myself to be interested throughout. I think I lasted 20 mns. Why would I enjoy several people being brutally murdered, however “bad” they were? Why would I enjoy someone doing the same thing someone did to her? I don’t get it.
Slownow – fair enough, you don’t have to like it (I personally find violence/aggressive shit on tv really difficult to watch, ranging from War documentaries to the housewives screaming at each other) – but, there is a huge market for these revenge pr0n type films. See Kill bill, the 26586 ‘Taken’ films, etc.
@Clare, I never said there wasn’t a market. It’s the fact that there is a market for this that completely bewilders me. Also, I think this should be questioned: in the political climate nowadays, what creative purpose does this kind of film have, with a white housewife killing brown people’s gangs that a few white corrupt people profit from? This is also a tradition in American film, a country where gun fetichisation is normalised. It shows a certain kind of mentality that rubs me the wrong way.
A corrupt white system protecting violent POC instead of law-abiding white people. This is too close to a drain the swamp, MAGA dogwhistle.
It bums me out that it has that problematic plot point. An action hero movie is JUST what she needs. She does great in rom-coms, but people LOVED her in Alias. This could have been great for her…but that plot, no.
JG looks pretty but I don’t care for the dress on her…it just looks odd.
That dress is horrible. What is with the train in the back? And why is it so wrinkled? I’ve seen her look much, much better.
I’m at the toll barrier and was just yelling across a lane to a coworker about this movie. The plot seems a bit….lady punisher. I’m hoping it does well for her. My boyfriends mother got to meet her a little while back when she came to our state to help with flood relief. She said she seemed very kind.
That’s a really powerful image.
She looks extra young. What’s up? Makeup?
Whatever it is, I want some of it! She looks great and very youthful.
It’s her new diet where she lost about 200 pounds with the stroke of a pen.
@ Heather, come on now, 200lbs. Are we really sticking with that number ;).
🙂 Do we weigh him with or without the unwashed clothes, beer bloat and empties on his person? I’m not making light of alcoholism, but I really think she looks great because right now she doesn’t have to worry about him, and legally she doesn’t have (though she will, father of her children and all)
What’s up with this overused wing background though – I feel like every ’boutique’ I’ve been in recently has a wall of wings for people to take selfies/instagram photos against.
Yeah, a gift shop close to me has them painted on the outside wall, and every time I’ve walked past it this summer, there’s been a girl getting her picture taken with it. (I haven’t seen one man pose with it yet, and I pass it frequently.)
Everything about this film seems like a terrible cliché, even the wings.
It started back in 2012 as street art in Los Angeles by an artist named Colette Miller. Some famous folks, including our mayor, got their photos snapped with the wings and it exploded and now there are knockoff wings on walls all over the world.
This movie looks toxic. A corrupt system protecting a cartel against a nice white family sounds like a deplorable dog whistle.
Using POC as generic bad guys in movies needs to stop. It is dehumanizing and contributes to a culture of violence and discrimination against POC.
Exactly. So we care when the system screws over the nice white picket fence family, in favor of the bad hombres? I’ll pass giving them my money, and maybe catch when my boyfriend streams it on TV.
Actually, the actor on the far right (in the blue suit) is Tyson Ritter. Also known as Humperdoo on Preacher.
Isn’t he the lead singer of the band All American Rejects? The name sounds familiar.
I like JG. I hope things go well for her. But I am not feeling the bad Latino gang murdering a child. I think this is not the climate for that. I wished they had used the white supremacist or neo-nazi as the bad guys.
Yes. It’s really unfortunate. As an Alias fan I think Jen G does great in action roles but this story is…problematic.
Or Incels, they make the perfect irredeemable badies
@ Esmom I completely agree. I have liked her since Alias and was really hoping to like this movie – that this would be a breakout role for her…. and I just can’t.
Her legs look fabulous, hair and makeup are great. I guess having your ex husband go to rehab is refreshing and regenerating? The movie sounds awful but she is living her best life clearly, good for her.
Peppermint: When Becky puts down the phone and picks up a glock.
LOL!!!
If you wanna make a film about the system, that’s NOT the way to do it. Completely irresponsible in this political climate, moreover.
Lmao.
I admit that there are days when I dream of being Becky. Fear me and my big bad glock! *
* okay, so what if my version of a glock is my electric zapper for swatting mosquitoes! I’m mean I tell you! Vicious even!
You don’t want to be Becky, though. Because Becky is just going to go after people having a bbq.
So, this is Jen G big comeback?
A white savior movie with dog whistles loud enough humans can hear them, and a project with racist extraordinaire and defender of white rapists Lena Dunham. And we’re supposed to root for that nonsense because… her husband – the one who spent the week leading to his wedding with his head between a stripper’s tighs – repeatdly cheated on her.
Keep it.
LOL. She drove her alcoholic stripper loving husband to rehab, she’s rising up from them ashes. She looks good here but the movie looks lame.
She looks great. I don’t love the dress, but in that first photo it is striking and dramatic.
I wish her success, but I’m not sure about this movie. I enjoy seeing her return to her Alias roots, but it definitely seems problematic. I’m going to wait to see some in depth reviews.
I saw the trailer for the movie and it piqued my interest. It reminds me of her earlier work Alias. I will see this movie at the theater when it’s on.
The trailer of the movie is interesting. I would love to see a female action movie at the theater and I like her voice when she says “I want justice”.
Ill go just to support her professionally,
She really does look amazing. Her acting in the Peppermint trailer not so much – same for the Camping clips that are being shown in the new HBO trailer montage that just came out.
Looks interesting, I like the angle of ” white corruption “.
I don’t think this subject is discussed nearly enough in our society.
I will go see it in my hometown of NYC.
Jennifer looks amazing, she has great hair and skin, very youthful, but not fake and manufactured looking.
She is one of the most natural looking actresses for sure.
The dress would be much better without the mullet part, it looks odd with it.
She has fantastic legs and arms, I say show them off in a classy, but not trashy way.
I have great respect for Garner, she seems to handle serious issues in her life with grace and compassion.
We need more of that in our world.
She needs a new hair stylist. Blah color and the style was messy and poofy
She is tiny and in such great shape she can wear anything with those legs!
Im mexican and im going to see this movie anyways. The cartels are a real thing and they do kill people. The mexican homie character is a bit cliche so i think it also depends on how the acting is. If the homies are like cheech from cheecb and chong, thats going to be super cheeseball
I like Garner, but really, yet another vigilante movie? WTH? What is it with Americans and the constant violent vigilante fantasies? It’s just so bizarre to me. Just in 2018 we’ve had The Equalizer2, Death Wish and now Peppermint. It’s like the movie equivalent of saying affirmations for violence and chaos.
She looks great. Legs to die for!
When her dress is photographed at a certain angle, it looks fantastic!
I think everyone is looking at her legs, arms, hair & make-up , though! She looks phenomenal!!!
She has had a rough, stressful week from taking Ben to rehab( that infamous car ride) to the family therapy sessions with Ben & her children ( as reports are claiming) ,but she was a consummate professional & even seems to enjoy promoting with the cast.
As for the movie, i don’t think i know what i would do if someone killed my husband & children & the court system failed me. I think that is what the movie is ( or least should) be about…
Great hair, amazing skin, fantastic legs and arms.
Don’t like the back of the dress, should have worn it short all around with her phenomenal body.
Natural beauty, very few of them in the entertainment business.
She looks awesome here. I love the dress, her legs are incredible
One of the most beautiful women I have ever seen.
I liked the dress. The cape, specially in motion, made her look Batman-ish, to add to the phoenix wings.. Perfect f*ck off to Ben. “Ben: I’m the superhero AND the phoenix without even trying”
The cape, reminds me the Zorro cape.
I always thought her people thought it was a super great idea to have those pics of her and Batdad in the car on the way to rehab precisely because of this terrible looking movie. Like oh look gullible people. She’s saving Batdad from big bad vices and isn’t this like Peppermint. Derp. Dont you want to go see Captain Capital One save the day in theaters too?
I believe she’s been mad for years about getting stuck raising those kids while Fatflek got to be an action “star” and she’s been doing Halmark quality Christian cheese flicks.
All these people are running games trying to make bucks duh
She looks beautiful here, go JG. Love the soft makeup and hair
Love Annie’s dress. Very striking.
I like Annie’s colorful skirt. I like also the shoes and the dress of the little girl who plays Jen’s daughter.
Meh. This isn’t what you wear to an action flick premiere.
She looks more like someone that’s starring in a dramatic comedy about a quirky family and a basic chicks deep inner strength.
Sponsored by Chick-fil-A.
She looks absolutely fantastic!