Anna Faris is opening up about the ways her son, Jack, pushes her to try new things — even if those “things” are terrifying.
“I am really proud that I will go on any roller coaster or any water slide,” Faris, 48, exclusively told Us Weekly while discussing her new campaign with Walmart, highlighting the retailer’s new Express Delivery option, which provides health and wellness services — including at-home delivery — to 93 percent of households in the United States.
“I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone because of my love for my son so many times,” she continued.” I’m really proud of that and I love it that he can count on me and I know that he sees that.” (Faris shares her 12-year-old son with ex husband Chris Pratt. She also shares two stepchildren with husband Michael Barret.)
While the love she has for her son will push her to face terrifying roller coaster heights and unruly water slides, it’s arguably the ways in which Faris and her family have navigated life after the devastating January L.A. wildfires that truly showcases the love she has for her child.
Anna Faris Shares How ‘Down to Earth’ Son Handled Losing Home in L.A. Fires
“It’s still surreal,” Faris told Us of what it was like to lose her California home in the blaze. “We are going to rebuild. It will be a process … I do anticipate in a year from now, it won’t be top of mind of course, [but] obviously it will still be something that we’re dealing with.”
She continued, “I do have these pangs — they’re not bad – but every hour or so, I’ll remember something and I don’t cry, but it does feel like a wince.”
Faris lost her $5 million home in the Pacific Palisades wildfire — one of a slew of wildfires that destroyed a reported 10,000 structures, 35,000 acres and killed at least 10 people in and around the greater Los Angeles area in January of this year, according to ABC News.
“As I was leaving the home — when it was time to evacuate — my elderly neighbor was getting helped out of our home by her son, and we looked at each other. It was so surreal,” Faris explained of the day she was forced to leave her home. “The fire’s coming, the sky is turning red, we’re evacuating, and we looked at each other and we were like, ‘Well, I guess better safe than sorry.’ And then three hours later, our houses were gone.”
Anna Faris Reveals the 1 Thing Son Jack, 11, Does That Makes Her ‘Crazy’
She added, “I think we all had this feeling of like, ‘Well, it’s not going to really happen. Sure, we’ll evacuate.’ But I think about that moment. As I was leaving with Jack, I walked past my favorite boots, my grandfather’s painting, a big stack of pictures that I had been organizing and this feeling of, I guess, I could grab that, but probably nothing’s going to happen. It turns out, I’m really bad in an emergency.”
While the loss of her “sentimental memories” and more is difficult, to say the least, the actress says it has also forced to “feel grateful for so many things.”
“I hope that doesn’t sound too smarmy, I guess, but that is kind of the feeling that I’m left with — this feeling of, I just feel so fortunate,” she explained. “And there’s so many of us that lost our homes and they weren’t nearly as fortunate as we were.”
She added, “I wish I could formulate something profoundly original [and] maybe I will someday, but we’re doing great. We are going to rebuild. The kids are really excited about that. I have two stepchildren with my husband and they’re all really looking forward to that.”
