Jessica Alba: "Things I Can't Live Without!"
By Dennis Hensley
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The notion of "fitting in" seems to be a continuing theme in Alba's life. And Hollywood may well be the ultimate "exclusive clique" that Alba must contend with. "I don't really know what Hollywood is; I just know what I am. I do know I've never been cool," Alba reveals. "I've never been part of the 'cool' Hollywood crowd, whatever that is. I've just never been that girl."
Besides her role in Fantastic Four, Alba has played a lasso-twirling exotic dancer in Sin City, a hip-hop choreographer in Honey and a scuba-diving shark expert in the upcoming Into the Blue. Though Alba is the first to admit she's in a cutthroat business, she claims she doesn't spend a lot of time crying over parts that got away. "If someone isn't completely gung ho about me doing a role, then I don't want to waste anybody's time," she says. "There are a lot of lovely girls out there, and I want women to be stars in every movie, in all genres. The more Camerons and Drews and girls like that, the better." It's clear Alba is thinking of her own future. "I'd like to do a physical comedy, and I'd love to do a really gritty drama," she allows. "But people in this business are afraid to take a risk on you. So actors are only as good as the roles they get. Would Tobey Maguire have gotten Seabiscuit if he wasn't successful in Spider-Man? Probably not. Success allows you the freedom to do roles in the movies you really want to do."
