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The holidays are approaching, with so many families preparing to walk through memory lane as they hang up the ornaments and plan visits to meet Santa. The hustle and bustle of the season is almost upon us, and with it comes the joy, the magic, and of course, the holiday parties. It can get overwhelming, but that’s where holiday party planner extraordinaire and beloved actress Jennifer Love Hewitt comes in.
Along with being known for her iconic roles in I Know What You Did Last Summer, 911, and Ghost Whisperer, Hewitt is all about making magic for her children during the holidays, and recently, she gave she knows some very rare insights on how she does it.
Despite being in the hard-knock entertainment industry since childhood, Hewitt is so incredibly real and down to earth. She speaks with such passion about her life, from her beautiful family to her career to preserving her late mother’s legacy. The woman people have fallen in love with over the years is exactly how you’d imagine her to be: warm, kind, and full of magic.
Hewitt sat down with SheKnows to discuss her partnership with Ferrero Rocher for the holiday season, specifically for their Add Your Golden Touch campaign. But along with that, she discussed her upcoming book, how her daughter has caught the acting bug, and all the sweet things she does to make sure her children have the best holiday season possible.
On Ferrero Rocher
Ferrero Rocher is a luxurious and accessible treat that people have loved for decades, especially during the holiday season. And their new campaign is all about helping people prepare for the holidays. On Nov 15, the brand created an online hub full of decorating tips, style guides, and DIY tutorials. (Plus, there’s an “Add Your Golden Touch” Sweepstakes where shoppers can win a 96-piece Ferrero Rocher® pyramid. To enter, visit https://ferrerorochergoldentouch.com.)
The brand, which Hewitt described to us as “such a festive, beautiful, classic kind of brand,” has been known for being a golden brand. “It always elevates the moment. It has a magical quality to it because of just how beautiful the packaging is and the pyramid. I can just remember being a part of festival holiday parties and gatherings, and Ferraro being such a part of that. So, it’s really fun to partner with them on this,” Hewitt told SheKnows, noting that it’s also a great “hostess gift or [a way] to add a little extra magic.”
On Her Sweet Family Holiday Traditions
Now, along with ensuring the magic of Ferrero Rocher is present in her home, Hewitt is all about planning and creating that holiday magic for her children. As many fans know, Hewitt goes all out for special occasions — from the holiday season to birthdays. In fact, when asked about what to do first to get into the holiday spirit, it’s all about planning!
“I feel like you need a game plan. I like to mix, too,” she gleefully said. “I am not an, ‘Oh, let me just think of it off the top of my head’ person. I use all the resources: Instagram, Pinterest, the websites of the moms. There are incredible people out there doing incredible things. Prep is such a big thing for me because it allows me to enjoy and not feel as stressed and manic.”
For the holidays, Hewitt revealed she does two different types of Christmas decorations in her home: “a pink Christmas on one side of the house for my daughter and then the more traditional like vintage-y type Christmas, me and the boys.”
Along with that, she revealed how much her three children (10-year old daughter Autumn and sons Atticus, 8, and Aidan, 2 with husband Brian Hallisay) look forward to all of the traditions she sets up. “They joke that they come home one day from school and they walk into Santa’s workshop, because I always try to decorate the big stuff while they’re away so that when they come in, it’s just like magic,” she enthuses. “I have music playing, and I’m usually in some sort of elf outfit; they really look forward to that. We also do a Christmas Eve sleepover in our room, which is really fun and they look forward to that every year. I make them a big giant bed, they all cuddle up, and we watch a movie. It’s really lovely.”
On Her Upcoming Book, Inheriting Magic
Along with being a beloved mother and iconic actress, Hewitt is also an author. Back in 2010, she released a book called The Day I Shot Cupid. However, fast forward to today, and she’s releasing another book. On Dec 10, 2024, her new book, Inheriting Magic: My Journey Through Grief, Joy, Celebration, and Making Every Day Magical, will hit shelves. The book is all about her life as a mom of three, her love for the holidays, and navigating the grief of losing her mother, Patricia.
Despite being a beloved celebrity, she and her husband work hard to ensure their children’s privacy, especially in a time when everything is posted everywhere. However, she’s ensuring this book will show everyone the real her — and who her family truly is.
She told us, “I was nervous, but I think after almost 36 years of having everybody write about my life, that isn’t me. It’s been really fun to sort of say, ‘This is who we are.’ My husband and I are kind of private. We’ve sort of kept it that way, especially with our children. As I was writing the book, I was like, ‘How do I do this without saying who we are as a family and honoring my mother?’”
“I hope that people know a little bit more about us when the book is over and it’ll be inspiring to people to kind of go create their own magic. I hope that my mom is looking down and feeling really proud,” she added. (And we know her mother is — with such an amazing accomplishment, what mother wouldn’t be proud?)
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On Her Upcoming Movie, The Holiday Junkie
Longtime fans are in for another serious treat on Dec 14. Hewitt has written, directed, and is starring in a Lifetime movie called The Holiday Junkie, which follows a woman who ran a decorating company with her mother. After her mother’s passing, she has to navigate her first Christmas without her mother, along with finding love and holiday magic.
And speaking of magic, this movie is set to be truly magical since Hallisay, and their three children are a part of it!
When asked about her favorite moment on set, she did reveal that while there “were lots” — but there was one moment in particular that she described as a “perfect moment” with her family. She recalled a story about how her late mother made it snow for her as a kid in LA, so she enlisted the help of the people who made it happen for her as a kid to do the same for her children.
“We decided to add this snow moment in the movie in her honor,” referring to her mother, and how, along with that, she also brought a Santa on set for the cast and crew to announce the wrapping. “All three kids were there. We finally got Aidan in the movie for two seconds. We were in the snow and it was so awesome. We all like jumped up and down and cried. I just felt such a full heart, felt like I had done this thing that was sort of my dream coming true I got to do with all of my favorite people. And it just felt like a perfect moment.”
On Her Daughter Autumn Acting
Hewitt has been acting since she was 10 years old. Since then, she’s been acting in major projects that have captured our hearts, including playing the character of Maddie in 9-1-1, which she referred to as one of her most challenging roles because of all the “crazy emotional storylines.”
Since she started acting, she’s gone through many phases, from child to teen to mom. She’s handled all with such grace, and now, her daughter, Autumn, is entering the same field. Earlier this month, Hewitt revealed that Autumn just got her SAG-AFTRA card, at the same age Hewitt got hers for her roles in 9-1-1 and The Holiday Junkie.
“She’s a big 9-1-1 fan. I let her come to work with me sometimes, and so when the little cameo came up on 9-1-1, we were like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it,’” she reminisced. “It was actually right around her birthday, so it was her birthday present to be able to come and be on the show. And then when the movie came up she was like, ‘Well I’m playing one of the kids, right?’”
“Then the fact that it arrived before her 11th birthday, and I got mine when I was 10 — it set me off,” Hewitt said emotionally. “I was so, I was so happy. It felt very much like my mom would do something like that.”
On Her Legacy as a Mom & Actor
Bringing the magic in everything she does, from her roles to her children’s lives, is a big part of Hewitt’s goal in life. Throughout our chat, she spoke so passionately about her career, her children, and, of course, her wonderful late mother. It’s clear her mother left such a beautiful legacy of love and magic — something Hewitt is ensuring is part of her legacy as well.
When asked about what kind of legacy she hopes to leave behind as a mom and actress, she contemplated, ending our chat on such a heartfelt moment.
“I hope I leave a legacy of somebody who believed in themselves and followed their dreams and was lucky enough to work for a very long time in an industry that’s not always easy to do,” she said, adding that she hopes people remember has “a hard worker, good to people, that people were good to me and that I created magic for us along the way.”
And for her children, she never wants them to forget that “from the day they were born, that they were the priority.”
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
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