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John McClane, Ethan Hunt, Jason Bourne, James Bond, John Wick… Any worthwhile action hero needs a great name, a name that rolls off the tongue, immediately striking fear in whoever’s in the room. It’s why there’s no action hero named Chad. No bad guy’s gonna say, “We need more men to stop Chad,” or “You don’t know who you’re messing with-- That’s Chad.” (Sorry to all the ‘Chads’ of the world, but it’s just not going to happen.) 

Riley North, however, is a pretty great name for an action hero. To be fair – anybody with a direction for a last name is someone you probably don’t want to cross. Which is why it’s unfortunate that a bunch of thugs shoot and kill Riley’s husband & daughter one fateful evening. If only someone had told them her name beforehand… 

In Peppermint, Jennifer Garner stars as the aforementioned Riley North, avenging her family’s demise and raking up quite the body count in the process. It’s a welcome return to the action genre for Garner (Alias, Daredevil), after a decade mostly of rom-coms and family dramas.  

In the following interview with the actress, she discusses the importance of an action hero’s name, returning to the genre, and how the script for Peppermint changed once she became involved. For the full interview, watch above. 

Jennifer Garner:

• How important is a great name for an action heroine? 
• Does a character’s name affect how you approach a character? 
• Does the character or script change at all when you join the film? 
• What was it about Peppermint that made you want to jump back into the action genre? 
• Was it conscious choice after Alias and Daredevil to move away from action? 
• Do you ever feel typecast in particular roles? 
• Is there a difference in stunt work today vs. back then? 
• What’s the most challenging part of the training process?