Jessica Alba is something of a triple threat: She's managed to achieve major success as an actress, fashion designer, and business mogul. It's hard to imagine anyone not wanting to work with Alba, but early in her career she had a hard time getting roles because of her race.
In a recent interview with PopSugar, Alba, whose father is Mexican American, revealed that being of mixed race was a major obstacle to securing leading roles.
"They couldn't figure out my ethnicity," Alba said. "I would always go out for 'exotic.' They were like, 'You're not Latin enough to play a Latina, and you're not Caucasian enough to play the leading lady, so you're going to be the "exotic" one.' Whatever that was."
But being the determined woman that she is, Alba said the adversity she dealt with only motivated her even more to snag those big parts, especially so she could become an example for the younger generation. "That was kind of a weird thing to wrestle with because I never had to look at myself that way or stick myself in a bucket," she said. "So I was more determined to be a leading lady to show that girls can look like me, and we can be leading ladies."
Of course, Alba eventually ended up starring in hits like Fantastic Four, Into the Blue, and Good Luck Chuck. So, yeah, it's safe to say she proved those people wrong.
And not only is this actress leading by example; she's also taking steps to change the game herself. The creation of Alba's cosmetics line, Honest Beauty, which she founded as part of her brand, The Honest Company, in 2015, stemmed from her own struggles as a young girl trying to find a foundation that matched her unique complexion. "I didn't feel like, when I was younger, that there were a lot of things offered to women of color," she said.
So Alba went out and made her own. "The philosophy around starting this beauty line is about enhancing who you are instead of cover up and turn you into somebody else," she said.
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