By Jessica Wedemeyer
9:57am PDT, Jun 30, 2017
Bad news for diehard Ali Larter fans: The action heroine is ready to retire from portraying gun-toting characters on the big screen. The mother of two — who joked to Wonderwall.com back in 2015 that her son once asked if she kills people for a living — is ready to branch out from portraying "kick-ass women" on the big screen, she told us during Cointreau's celebration of the Original Margarita and The Art of La Soirée in Los Angeles in late June 2017. The "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter" star also dished on the struggle to balance her career as an actress with her role as a mother, her plans for a follow-up to her 2013 cookbook, her current home remodeling project — plus all things hosting! — and more. Keep reading for the highlights from our chat with the Hostess with the Mostess…
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Ali Larter on feeling closure with the "Resident Evil" franchise:
"I definitely do [feel closure]. It was a decade of my life. I loved working on it. I have been holding lots of guns in different shows and movies. For some reason I'm always playing these kick-ass women, which I love doing. But there's also kind of a new chapter that I'm ready for also. I loved working with Milla [Jovovich] and [director] Paul [W. S. Anderson], but there are some other things that I'd like to be working on too."
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Ali Larter on her plans for a follow-up to her 2013 cookbook, "Kitchen Revelry":
"I will do another one — I just need the time. I balance between my acting career — I just finished my show 'Pitch' and I have another movie I'm going to do — and other things like food. And then I'm a mom of two young kids and a wife. And I'm not someone who farms things out. I'm someone who does things herself and has a real true creative part in everything that comes out of something that I do — I don't hire these massive teams and then put my name on it. I lead my life with authenticity, and when I do another one, it will be about that."
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Ali Larter on the latest with her kids with actor Hayes MacArthur, Teddy and Vivienne:
"My son graduated from kindergarten, and that is incredible. It has been so magical watching him do it. And I was able to throw his kindergarten graduation [party]. It was simple — it was in the park. It didn't have to be a big deal. I'm just really proud of him. Our daughter is 2-and-a-half, and I feel like our family is complete. I just feel really lucky to be able to have some time with them this summer. And then I'll be back to work."
Ali Larter on her recent two-week cleanse, which required her to give up alcohol:
"I get so caught up in festivities of the moment and going, 'You know what? It's Tuesday. I miss my girlfriends. Come on, let's go out!' It was just great to kind of go, 'You're gonna have shakes. You're gonna cut out sugar. You're gonna go to bed early.' It was just really boring. That's what I took out of it. … I don't often do two weeks. I'll often do three or four days. So it was long for me. I did feel great afterwards. … I think cleansing is an important thing if you're someone who loves to indulge, and I'm someone who loves to eat cheese, loves to enjoy great cocktails, travels. I travel a lot. I work a lot. So I think that grounding yourself is important."
Ali Larter on forcing herself to exercise as a busy working mom:
"I went for a run today. There was no time. I had 30 minutes. But I just did it. That's the difference for me with working out: the times where I would prefer to be doing something else, I force myself to go."
Ali Larter on remodeling her house:
"It's similar to other things in my life: I'm not someone who likes anything cookie-cutter. I like to have my own creative vision. But it takes work and time — and some dough! … We're doing a kind of a modern take on midcentury. It's gonna be a little swanky. Swanky is the word that keeps coming up. But it's also going to have fruit trees because I love to cook. I can see my friends grabbing a basket and grabbing oranges and lemons and apples when they're in season and rushing into the kitchen and making cocktails and creating [a meal] around whatever is blossoming and producing in that moment. … I love gardening. I've had many gardens before — especially herb gardens and tomatoes and cucumbers. Cucumbers are one of my favorite things. Lots of those and melons. … I can't wait to have soirees there. [I'm already thinking about] what my cocktail is gonna be there and the dish I'm going to serve."
Ali Larter on her hosting style:
"I love having people over and really figuring out how to make the evening special and just a little different — a little exciting — but also keep it in a classic vein. … It's also about not over-doing it. It's about having a little bit of glam but also keeping it really organic and making it accessible. Some of the greatest times of my life have been the parties I've thrown for people who I love."
Ali Larter on her ideal margarita:
"My margarita is two parts tequila, one part lime juice and one part Cointreau. That's just what I do. I love to steep my tequila with jalapeno for one to three days so it's spicy."
