Jennifer Garner is using the paparazzi for good. The 51-year-old actor, who hosted a food drive at her home in lieu of a typical 50th birthday party back in 2022, continued her volunteer work in Santa Monica on September 17. In a video shared by TMZ, Garner could be seen offering a bag of supplies to an unhoused individual from her car before realizing that the wheelchair user was barefoot.
In the video taken by a paparazzi—which did raise some skeptical eyebrows online—Garner can be seen exiting her vehicle to help the unidentified man into a pair of socks before offering him her own shoes from her feet. However, upon realizing that her sneakers would not fit him, the actor used the celebrity photographer’s presence to her advantage, running up to the pap and asking for his shoe size. Upon learning that the photographer wears a size 11, she asked to purchase the shoes from him on the spot. The photographer, whose name is Eric, later offered the unhoused man a blanket from his car.
While some X.com users questioned the photographer’s presence, noting that Garner knew his name, it’s worth pointing out that while many celebrities do call the paparazzi on themselves, others are still followed without their consent. Furthermore, it’s not unusual for celebrities to exchange information with these photographers for a variety of reasons. It’s also possible that Garner asked for his name during their interaction as the video appears to have been edited.
Jennifer Garner is often placed on a pedestal as “America’s Sweetheart” or a “nice girl” and reflected on the label back in 2022. “I have no reason not to be nice. My life is lovely,” she told Town & Country. “I’m not always just nice. I can also be salty, and I can be taciturn, or I can be really serious about what I want to get done. It’s not that I feel I’m underestimated in that way—I’m not afraid to stand up for myself and say, ‘Just so you know, this isn’t going to fly with me.’ When that happens, I don’t want you to be shocked that I’m a real person.”
