Julia Garner is the kind of actor who commits so intensely to a project, one can be excused for mistaking her for the characters she plays—for example, the con artist Anna Delvey in Inventing Anna, or even the fictional Missouri-based criminal Ruth in Ozark. In her latest project, The Royal Hotel, Garner once again melts into her role—that of Hanna, a young traveler who finds herself in an unnerving situation after she runs out of money in Australia and must take a job at a bar in a remote mining town. Here, Garner talks about the film, the end of Ozark, and the one word she avoids when discussing her performances.
How did The Royal Hotel come into your life?
I worked with [the director] Kitty Green on The Assistant. She called, gave me the script, and that was it. I love working with her, and it was an opportunity to work together again and also to executive produce. It’s been a joy.
Were you a theatrical child?
Yes. I would wake up and start singing, but I was also really shy. That’s one of the reasons I started acting, to overcome my shyness.
The characters you play—from Ruth in Ozark to Anna Delvey in Inventing Anna to Hanna in The Royal Hotel—all seem to have a secret, something internalized that they’d never admit.
I don’t even like saying “characters”—I don’t like that word. They are people. I want to know them so well that I could be having a conversation with you and be worrying about something else as the person I’m playing. And I really do miss them when the project ends.
Do you find it liberating to play these crazy people who aren’t shy?
I do, but I also think that they’re shy in their own way, in the sense where they’re not really exposing who they actually are. Only the audience can see who they actually are.
As Ruth in Ozark, you got to really transform—it’s not fair what happened to her, but they had to end it somehow.
I know. I’m just happy that I made it to the end. Every single season, I would say to the showrunner, Chris Mundy, “Am I going to be okay this year?” He’s like, “You’re fine. You’re not going to die.”
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The actor continues her partnership with Gucci as the face of Gucci Guilty Elixir
Actor Julia Garner is known for her captivating camera presence, whether she is portraying a strong female lead or showing off her flaxen curls and doll-like visage on the red carpet. As one of the faces of the Gucci Guilty fragrance collection, the 29-year-old starlet represents a new era in the campaign imagery for the brand’s latest evolution: the Gucci Guilty Elixir.
The parfum pour femme updates the original olfactory profile of the Gucci Guilty collection with amber florals, notes of wisteria accord, and citrusy mandora. Those elements combine with vanilla absolute and wisps of tonka bean, rose, and violet accord. Altogether, it evokes a festive feeling for Garner.
“[The fragrance] is really celebratory, in a way, so I’m just really excited. I feel so grateful to be a part of, and welcomed into, the Gucci family,” she tells Bazaar. “It’s so rare that you meet people as kind and talented as the people at Gucci, and they’re just so wonderful as human beings. I feel like I won the lottery with them. Every time I work with them, it feels like I’m celebrating something.”
Considering the level of her fame, it is understandable that Garner values the presence of a trusted community and inner circle so highly. After being launched into superstardom thanks to her breakout performance as Ruth in the Netflix crime drama Ozark, she credits the people in her life with helping her stay centered amidst it all.
“For me, the most important thing is surrounding myself with good people. You want to be around people that bring out the best in you. I’m very lucky—I have a great family, great friends, a great husband, but even if I’m meeting new friends, I always want to surround myself with grounded and healthy people,” she says. “That grounds me, and gets me out of myself and my crazy profession.”
Hence her enthusiasm for the connections she has made through this collaboration. She looks at home as a starring presence in the muted tones of the shoot, with modern stars and a retro feel. Asked whether she ever relies upon fragrance to help get into character, she replies, “It’s funny, because a lot of the characters that I’ve played would not wear perfume. If I were to incorporate the Guilty fragrance with a character, it would probably have to be somebody that is a really strong character, a strong personality. It has a boldness to it that I think I would put to a bold person, if I was playing that type of role.”
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The Inventing Anna actor and face of Gucci Beauty talks growing up in New York, working with A$AP Rocky and Elliot Page and always listening to her instincts.
Since arriving on our screens in 2012, Julia Garner has delivered one unwaveringly gripping performance after another. A string of Primetime Emmy Awards under her belt, including Outstanding Supporting Actress for her role as Ruth Langmore in Ozark and Outstanding Lead Actress for Inventing Anna, the New York-born actor is a powerhouse of authenticity, both on-screen and off.
Known for her signature platinum pixie curls and striking red carpet presence, it’s hard to believe that Garner’s emergence as Gucci Beauty’s latest muse is her first public endeavour into beauty – and the reason why she’s chatting to ELLE UK today.
Joining the 29-year-old star on her venture, is actor Elliot Page and rapper A$AP Rocky, who collectively make up the new face of Gucci Beauty. The latest iteration of its cult scent, Gucci Guilty Elixir Pour Femme, sees a classic bouquet reimagined with notes of violet, bergamot, tonka bean and vanilla; Pour Homme lends itself to fans of a more woody, leather scent.
We caught up with Garner to discuss the scents of her childhood, her high school beauty routine and why authenticity extends far beyond her career on screen…
What are your first memories of scents?
‘My mother is of German heritage, so she would always make chicken schnitzels growing up. I always just remember how that smells. My dad is a painter and his studio is in the basement of our house so I always would go downstairs and watch him paint and so art supplies are also a very early scent for me.’
Growing up in an artistic household, did you always know you wanted to be an actor?
‘I was always exposed to the best art, not only with my family being artists but also just growing up in New York and being exposed to different things. I didn’t ever think that I was going to be an actor, even when I started. I always just loved film, I used to watch Turner Classic Movies growing up as a kid, but I didn’t know that it is a real industry. I really enjoyed, and I (still) really enjoy, being an audience when the show is great.’
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The trifecta comes together to front Gucci Guilty’s latest campaign.
Julia Garner, A$AP Rocky, and Elliot Page walk onto a set…
It’s an eclectic crew, and, it turns out, the beginning of a whole new era for Gucci Guilty—specifically, the Guilty Pour Femme and Pour Homme fragrances. The just-released campaign is an ode to self-acceptance, friendship, and love in all its forms, making this trio the perfect one to drive the message home. After all, each featured talent has recently gone through their own massive period of growth: Garner, a Golden Globe- and Emmy-winning actress, catapulted into the spotlight and streamers in Netflix’s Inventing Anna; Page, an Oscar-nominated actor, director, and producer forged his own path and will soon tell his story in an upcoming memoir; and Rocky, a Grammy-nominated musician, recently became a father.
The star-studded trifecta come together to create a pure moment of open-hearted bliss. They gaze at each other—truly seeing one another—creating an ambiance of ease and care within a safe space. “They celebrate the countless iterations of love, embodying complete self-acceptance and showing how openness unleashes the purest form of expression,” Gucci explains via a press release.
“I met both of them for the first time on that shoot, but it didn’t feel like it. Within the first 10 minutes, it felt like we all knew each other for a long time,” says Garner of her co-stars, before adding, “Humor is such a big quality for me, and they both have such a great sense of humor. It was such a special memory.” The synergy in the video and the shoot exemplifies the vibe—something, no matter how good of an actor you are, you can’t fake or force. Adds Page, “I had never done a campaign before, so I felt a tad shy at the beginning to be honest, but Rocky and Julia are the loveliest people, and upon meeting them, my nerves evaporated. They are big-hearted, kind, sincere, hilarious, and grounded.” The song “Life Is But a Dream” by The Harptones plays in the background as the three dance, laugh, and simply exist with one another, which can feel like a rarity for this caliber of celeb. “It just felt normal,” says Rocky of the experience. “It didn’t feel like I was with two other celebrities; I didn’t feel like a celebrity.”
Prominently featured in the campaign is Gucci Guilty Eau de Parfum Pour Femme, an energizing, spicy, and refreshing scent featuring notes of pink pepper, lilac, and Mediterranean Mandora citrus, with a strong, warm base of amber and patchouli. It quietly commands your attention. The yin to its yang, Gucci Guilty Eau de Parfum Pour Homme, generates a deep sensuality, embracing a base of patchouli, leather, and incense, while deviating from a traditional male scent profile with uplifting notes of orange blossom and neroli. And though the bottles are binary, the fragrances themselves are not, billed as being interchangeable between the sexes, with the scents marinating and marrying with individual pheromones, versus a specific gender profile. “I prefer the feminine one,” Rocky says, unabashedly. “To me, the liquid in here smells better on my body,” as he holds up the shimmering gold bottle of Gucci Guilty Eau de Parfum Pour Femme.
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“It’s so hard to play around with your identity,” she says. “It’s dangerous, actually.”
Julia Garner is a little nervous at the start of our interview, and it has nothing to do with her slew of upcoming film projects, many of which are being kept under wraps. “My dog might come in at any second,” she says, eyes darting back and forth between the door and our Zoom. After a long pause, she lets out a sigh. “I think he’s good,” she says. When I tell Garner, who appears on our 2023 Hollywood cover, that I’m thinking of getting a dog myself, she smiles. “You’re going to understand the stressful Zooms of locking your dog in a room, and then…[mimics her dog whining].”
One thing Garner remains calm and collected about is her career. “I don’t worry about it because, to be honest, I know what I’m capable of doing as an artist,” says the actor, who’s been on an award-winning streak since starring in Ozark back in 2017, earning an Emmy nomination last year for her performance in Inventing Anna as well. Still, she remembers the moments of doubt from earlier in her career: “I actually remember those moments more than the good, because I feel like any kind of professional trauma is character-building. It makes you work to the point where you don’t get to that place again. It makes you work harder.” Now, Garner has two new movies coming our way: The Royal Hotel (from Kitty Green, who directed her in The Assistant) and Apartment 7A. Ahead, excerpts from a conversation about navigating a career and wrestling with the complexities of social media.
Vanity Fair: When was the first time you truly felt like a professional actor?
Julia Garner: The first time I felt like acting wasn’t just a hobby, honestly, was when I got my first professional job in Martha Marcy May Marlene. I was 16 and I remember getting that first paycheck and becoming a member of SAG. I was fixated on the SAG card and remember being like, “Wow, I’m a real actor.” That’s where I really learned how to be on a set.
At that time, Sundance was still super independent. There weren’t tons of endorsements happening there. Only certain people had iPhones and BlackBerries. You had to pay for the internet every month, and the people who did have internet were lawyers, not actors. My mom wasn’t going to pay the extra money. Things were a little different.
In terms of your career, how far ahead are you strategizing? Are you always thinking, say, five years in advance?
It’s such a complicated question. When I was 21, I had a pretty dry year. This was before I booked Ozark. It wasn’t a great year for me as an actor. I felt a little hopeless. I wasn’t getting jobs for a few months. It was really hard. I remember thinking, If I’m still in the same place in five years, I don’t want to do this. It’s a really hard business and there are other businesses out there other than acting. I was still young at the time, but it’s tough because in the acting world, 21 is young, but it’s not so young. You’re not 16 or 17 anymore. You’re not the bright, shiny new toy, and this business relies on shining. They love a shiny new toy. I booked Ozark and I kept pushing because I felt like I still had a lot to do.
When you told yourself that you’d quit acting and do something else if you were in the same place in five years, did you know what that “something else” would be?
No. So I’m going to be honest: I’m not good at a lot of things, so I was like, “This acting thing better work out.” I’m somewhat decent at acting. And I just continued to have the stamina, worked really hard, and not have entitlement.
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The Ozark star discusses her third Emmy win and how she crafts her own characters through fashion.
There are certain fashion collections that just make so much sense with certain stars. For Julia Garner, it’s perhaps Alessandro Michele’s poetic Cosmogonie collection for Gucci. Earlier this month, the Ozark star won her third Emmy for Best Supporting Actess while wearing an embellished velvet gown from the resort 2023 collection. Less than two weeks later, she’d touch down in Milan to attend Michele’s stellar spring 2023 show in another velvet look—this time a dramatic wide-legged jumpsuit. There were edgy, skin-baring elements to both ensembles, with Garner’s Emmys gown featuring a diamond-shaped cutout that revealed her midriff. Meanwhile, her front-row outfit boasted wide shoulder straps that left just enough to the imagination.
On-screen and off, Garner is a fashion chameleon and often likes to disappear into a character when approaching her style for special events. For this occasion, the velvet jumpsuit afforded the 28-year-old the opportunity to reference 1920s Hollywood, a time and place she often returns to in her dressing. Working with her stylist Elizabeth Saltzman, Garner accessorized the look with a multi-strand choker necklace of glass pearls, as it was seen on the runway. Gelled-down hair and strong brows were the finishing touches to turn the actress into what she has dubbed “an old Hollywood tomboy.”
Here, Garner chats with W more about the inspiration behind the ensemble, her recent Emmys win, and how she curates her Instagram mood boards.
What was the inspiration behind your look for the Gucci spring 2023 show?
My brilliant stylist and friend, Elizabeth Saltzman and I had so much fun with this look. We love having a story behind every look. When I first tried on the suit, it felt very feminine and masculine at the same time, almost something you would see in a Helmut Newton photograph. For hair and makeup we were going for a silent film era, Louise Brooks vibe mixed with ’90s Linda Evangelista. I had my other friend and hair guru, Bobby Eliot, do my hair and the wonderful Emily Cheung do makeup.
Do you ever approach your outfits as a sort of character creation like you do in your acting? What character were you embodying for the Gucci show?
I always approach my looks for fashion events as some kind of a character. The character for the look yesterday was kind of like an old Hollywood tomboy.
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