jessica biel
ACTRESS JESSICA BIEL OPENS UP TO OK! ABOUT FAMILY LIFE WITH HUSBAND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE, NOT LETTING WORK TAKE OVER AND WHAT MAKES HER ANGRY
You might think it’s difficult juggling being an in-demand actress and raising two kids but Jessica Biel says it’s all just a question of focus.
The 39-year-old, who has sons Silas, six, and Phineas, one, with her singer and actor husband Justin Timberlake, gives us a candid insight into their home life when we catch up with her.
“If I’m at home being a mum, then I’m at home being a mum and I try not to take phone calls at the same time,” she tells OK!. “I try to do one thing wholeheartedly and focus on that one thing.”
She’s also quick to praise Justin, 40, calling their experience of being parents “stripped-down” and “raw” – and a world away from their glitzy Hollywood jobs.
And speaking of jobs, Jessica is gracing UK screens in mystery drama Limetown. She plays journalist Lia Haddock, a role she says she’s enjoyed delving into.
Here, the actress fills us in on her latest project, reveals how she really feels about glitzy red carpet events and her love of routine now that she’s got two children...
Hi, Jessica. What’s it like to see Justin as a father?
You see your partner in a completely different way [when you have children] because you see them interact with this little, perfect thing that you’ve created. All ego and all of the “cool factor” is gone when they are laying on the floor googly-eyeing a fat baby. It’s a genuinely innocent and pure love that you get to watch. It’s very stripped-down.
That sounds super-cute…
It’s like watching a human being at their most raw state when they are handling a little baby. It’s incredible. I feel like I look at Justin totally differently some days. I am in awe of him.
As an actor and producer, you must be an expert multi-tasker...
I think I’m pretty good at multi-tasking but I find that I can’t give all of my brainpower to one certain thing. To be honest, I try to do less multitasking now. If I’m working, I’m working. If I’m at home being a mum, then I’m at home being a mum and I try not to take phone calls at the same time. I try to do one thing wholeheartedly and focus on
that. A very smart woman gave me that advice.
Does this mean you’re great at balancing your free time when you’re away from work?
Yes, I think I am pretty good about it. I definitely spend a lot of time looking for the right thing to work on. I don’t jump into projects very easily or quickly because I have a family and I really do have to sacrifice my time with my children and my husband in order to work. I am really picky about material now. I want to be inspired and for me to work on a project, I want to feel like I cannot not do it.
Are you strict about your scheduling?
I am much less of a scheduler. I’m very flexible. My whole life has been, “OK, you’ve got a new job and you leave for Budapest tomorrow for three months.” In that sense, I have to be fluid and flexible – but I am good with a routine. Routine definitely helps me stay focused, but I don’t need it. I can be all over the place and I’m very comfortable with that.
‘HAVING A CHILD, I HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED MORE EMOTIONS’
An actor’s life usually involves red carpets and premieres. Do you still enjoy that aspect of your job?
Sometimes it can feel less exciting, perhaps as I’ve done them so often now. To me, it’s part of work and also fun because it’s glamorous and you get to dress up. That part is fun but it also feels important and serious. It feels like I’m there to do my job and I want to do it well, so it feels much more of a work experience than anything else. It was all about the story. I thought the story was fascinating and surprising. It takes lots of unexpected turns, which
I love. And the ending is very insane. I was fascinated and fixated.
It’s a very terrifying but compelling story that creatively inspired me.
What else drew you to the TV project?
I was looking forward to the opportunity to create a really intriguing and complex female protagonist; a character who is very masculine and has a big ego. She is very driven and she’s not a victim at all. I love delving into the pathology of the characters I play. I like to think about what is going on in the brain of a particular person. What makes them unique? Where is their trauma?
Your character in Limetown is a bit of a loner and a procrastinator. Are you similar in any way?
I procrastinate on some things but not a lot of things. And I am a bit of an introverted loner. I’m very driven, too. We definitely share that characteristic.
In Limetown, my character has quite a strong ego and I think maybe we differ there. At least,
I hope so.
What do you procrastinate about?
Well, I’ve been saying I’m going to learn a language for about 20 years now and it’s got to the point that it’s getting embarrassing. That seems to be on the back burner, even though I don’t mean it to be on the back burner. I don’t seem to procrastinate very often with work. It’s more about the personal stuff; it’s with things that I want to do to expand my own character and expand myself as a human. I always want to go back to school. I always want to take a class somewhere; even if it’s not fully going back to school, it will enhance my mind about something I’m interested in. But that’s been put on the back burner, too.
You always seem calm and collected but how do you deal with anger? Do you ever burst into a rage?
Yes [laughs]. Absolutely. I mean, this is just the truth… Having a child, I have never experienced more emotions in all my life – anger being one of them.
Do you get loud when you become angry?
Sometimes I wish I was a bit more of a loud, angry person. I am not.
I am very much a still, silent, private angry person, which is really bad. I sound like I am an explosion about to happen, and I don’t mean that.
I just don’t go screaming and throwing plates against the wall. That doesn’t do it for me. That doesn’t make me feel better, so I am a little more contained when it comes to my anger.
How does Justin handle his anger?
He’s a very passionate person but he is also not a thrower or a screamer. I just let him get it out. Isn’t that what you have to do with men? Just let them get it out and then they come around and it’s all fine. Or send them to the golf course!
Catch Jessica in Limetown every tuesday at 9pm on alibi