It should come as no surprise that Scarlett Johansson has really good skin. The actress has graced our screens for over two decades, and her visage seemingly has the same bounce and brightness as it did when she first appeared in pictures. (Although she was nine years old when she made her first movie, North, so that’s not exactly a fair comparison.)
But maintaining a poreless-appearing visage hasn’t always been easy. The award-winning actress experienced skin issues that negatively impacted her self-image and mental health.
“I struggled with sensitive skin and acne for years, to the point that I wouldn’t leave the house without concealer on,” the actress tells Katie Couric Media in a new interview. The expectation for celebrities to have perfect skin is unrealistic. After all, while they have professional glam teams and the best photographers on call, there’s no stopping skin issues at any age, whether they’re due to genetics or hormonal changes such as menopause, and piling makeup on top of a breakout can be a recipe for disaster. Even someone considered to be one of the most beautiful women has grappled with the same concerns we do. Always the over-achiever — she’s currently taking on OpenAI for allegedly copying the likeness of her voice — Johansson took the initiative to find a solution.
The tale is old as time: “The products that were supposed to fix my skin just made it worse, and too many harsh active ingredients were damaging my skin barrier,” she says. “When I simplified my routine and nurtured my skin with moisture every day, my skin transformed.”
“I knew that others must be facing the same challenges and that really inspired me. I spent five years researching the problem and talking to product formulators before meeting my partner, Kate Foster. We bonded over our shared passion for skincare and experiences with sensitive skin, and The Outset was born.”
Johansson is now a mother of two, but it’s safe to say that The Outset is her third baby. Founded in March 2022 alongside beauty executive Foster, they set out with the shared belief that skincare can and should be gentle. It was a “radical” approach, with the goal of simplifying your routine rather than complicating it with harsh chemicals. The Outset is a reset, so to speak.
Since its launch, the actress has continued to work closely with her team to find and develop ways to make people feel better about their skin. We caught up with her to discuss the brand, how mental health is closely tied to how you feel about your looks, and more.
Katie Couric Media: How has becoming a mother changed your perspective of self-care?
Scarlett Johannson: I try to be OK with things being out of control and just accept that things change all the time, which is hard to do. My self-care tip is to give yourself credit and grace; you can’t control every single thing, so be gentle with yourself. I’ve always been fairly minimalist with my skincare routine, but after becoming a mom, I’m busier than ever, and that has really forced me to keep my routine as short as possible. Most days, I truly only use The Outset’s 3-step routine (cleanse, prep, moisturize). I timed out my morning skin routine with my Outset products and it’s 2 minutes and 45 seconds. How’s that for efficiency?
Many of us struggle with drying, mature skin. Do you have any words of advice (or products!) for women who want to age gracefully but also want to care for their skin?
I struggled with dry and sensitive skin for years, so I understand the challenge! All our products were designed to be hydrating and to protect the skin barrier, thanks to our signature ingredient, Hyaluroset Complex. We worked really hard to use active ingredients that were both effective and non-irritating in our formulas. I particularly recommend our Night Cream. The texture is so luxe, and it deeply hydrates and restores skin overnight. It also includes Bakuchiol, a botanical alternative to retinol that reduces hyperpigmentation, fine lines, and wrinkles without the dryness or irritation you can get with retinol.
For extra hydration, my makeup artist Frankie also showed me a hack: adding a few drops of our Boosting Oil to our Daily Moisturizer, which I now use all the time.
What is your biggest skincare regret (that isn’t not wearing SPF in your youth)?
Spending too much time stripping my moisture barrier with harsh actives — I thought I needed to completely strip my skin to get rid of acne and ended up in a cycle of breakouts and irritation.
What’s the best skincare tip you ever received, and where did it come from? How did it transform your skin?
The best piece of beauty advice I ever received was probably from my sister, who told me to leave my skin alone. She would say, “Stop touching it.” The consistency of the routine, that’s an important thing. When I was having really terrible breakouts, I was going through all these different things to try to solve the problem. You’re trying different creams, you’re trying diet elimination stuff, tonics…all of this stuff, and it’s just too much. Using harsh actives at the same time, in my experience, makes the problem much worse.
What are your favorite “extra” skin care practices? Like red light therapy, facials…
I am really very minimal when it comes to my routine, and I’m not a facial person. I think because I had acne for so long, I was just terrified of anybody touching my face. So I cannot tell you the last time I got a facial, but I love to use our clay mask for 10 minutes once a week!
Mental health goes hand in hand with self-care. It can be hard to get into skincare if you’re not feeling confident or seeing results. Do you have any advice for women who struggle with getting their skin where they want it to go?
Whether you’re in the public eye or not, challenges with your skin can make you feel self-conscious about how you look and how you present yourself to the world. It can really weigh on your self-confidence. For such a long time, the messaging around skincare was cleansing your skin and getting rid of “dirty skin.” When I was struggling with acne, it felt very much like I had dirty skin that I had to clean or fix.
It’s a different landscape now than when I was growing up — now there’s such a community around sharing similar experiences online, so I would say reaching out and finding communities of other women online who have similar issues can really help you feel supported. It’s important to share when you’re struggling — don’t keep it in. For my skin, having a consistent routine of washing and adding moisture back into the skin barrier is what worked — if you can be consistent with that routine, I think that’s what yields the best results.
