Jennifer Garner has spoken candidly about the intense paparazzi attention her family faced while her children with ex-husband Ben Affleck were young, describing it as "totally ludicrous" and dangerous. Speaking on the Shut Up Evan podcast, the actress recalled campaigning alongside Halle Berry in 2013 to change California law protecting children from photographers, testifying before the state assembly before the legislation was passed. She said the scrutiny endangered not just her family but bystanders too, despite acknowledging the privilege that came with her Hollywood success.

Garner described photographers running red lights, driving onto lawns and even disrupting her child's soccer games, with the local association once asking the family to stop attending because of the number of cars showing up. She also recounted being blocked from a paediatrician's office while carrying a sick child, and said preschoolers were knocked over by photographers desperate to reach her or Affleck. She noted she was targeted specifically because of her children, unlike more famous neighbours such as Matt Damon, and revealed she still has two photographers assigned to follow her daily after more than two decades, including one with whom she has developed an unusually trusting relationship.