Jennifer Garner Calls “Love, Simon” the 'Most Important Film I've Ever Been a Part Of'

Benjamin VanHooseMon, March 2, 2026 at 6:32 PM UTC

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Nick Robinson, Talitha Bateman, Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel in "Love, Simon" (2018)Credit: 20th Century Fox/Moviestore/Shutterstock -

Jennifer Garner said 2018's Love, Simon is "the most important film I've ever been a part of"

The actress played Nick Robinson's onscreen mom in the teen rom-com about a high schooler coming out as gay

"I'm so grateful that I got to play that role and be that mom," said Garner

Jennifer Garner is proud to have been part of the 2018 movie Love, Simon.

The star reflected on the most memorable roles of her career while promoting season 2 of The Last Thing He Told Me, on the U.K.'s Hits Radio.

When host Olivia Marks told her that Love, Simon, a coming-of-age film about a suburban high schooler coming out as gay, was one of her favorites, Garner explained that she considers it her "most important" project.

"Speaking of perfect cinematic moms, a film that I struggle talking about without crying is Love, Simon," said Marks. "The way you say, 'You get to exhale now, Simon,' ruined me."

"Oh, no, it's gonna make me cry. I love that movie," Garner, 53, said.

The emotional scene — in which Garner's Emily lovingly tells her son Simon (Nick Robinson) that he finally gets to be his most authentic self after coming out — is "shot in a way that you're talking to the audience," Marks points out. "How intentional was that?"

"Making that film into a frothy, irresistible romantic comedy and having that [scene] at the core was entirely intentional," said Garner. "[Director] Greg Berlanti knows exactly what he's doing. He's a genius."

Jennifer Garner on Jan. 11, 2026Credit: Savion Washington/2026GG/Penske Media/Getty

Garner recalled that signing on to be in the film played a part in helping the project get funded, and she felt compelled to join the cast because of the message.

"I did not need to go to Atlanta right then and do that movie," she said, "but I just— it's the most important film I've ever been a part of. I'm so grateful that he asked me. I'm so grateful that I got to play that role and be that mom."

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"I hear from people — especially on flights. Flight attendants will pass me a note, you know, 'Love, Simon helped; I saw it with my parents, it really helped us have a conversation,' " she said. "I'm just like, thank God I get to be that mom to people and they can tell me that."

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Garner, who is a mom to three kids, added that Love, Simon is an example of why "art is so important."

"Art helps you see yourself. It helps you see yourself reflected back. It helps you dream. It helps you see outside of yourself and experience someone else's experience of the world and have more openness and empathy for them," she said. "It's just, it's so important."

Love, Simon, based on Becky Albertalli’s novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, also starred Josh Duhamel, Alexandra Shipp, Katherine Langford, Keiynan Lonsdale, Natasha Rothwell and more. It inspired a sequel TV series called Love, Victor, led by Michael Cimino, that ran for three seasons on Hulu.

In 2018, Garner told PEOPLE what she wanted audiences to take away from the movie.

"To me, if I could say something that I hope that a teenage kid who’s struggling with whether to come out, what they’re feeling, I hope that they see this and don’t stay alone in their head,” she said at the time.

“I hope they find somebody ... whether it’s their mom, whether it’s a friend where they let themselves talk about what’s going on. Because that’s the scariest thing, when you’re alone with yourself in your head, especially for teenagers, that can be a big, big, wide dark place."

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”