Natalie Morales may have recently wrapped the last season of Dead to Me, but you likely recognize the actor from a handful of other cult-favorite series like Parks and Recreation, The Newsroom, Santa Clarita Diet, and Trophy Wife.
Trophy Wife’s premature cancellation remains a tragedy even today, but some good has come out of it: Gene Stupnitsky, who produced the show—and wrote acclaimed (and seriously cringe-inducing) The Office episodes “Dinner Party” and “Scott’s Tots”—asked Morales to be a part of his latest film No Hard Feelings.
“Gene Stupnitsky and I knew each other from Trophy Wife, then I heard that he was doing this movie with Jennifer Lawrence and he asked me if I would be a part of it,” Morales tells Glamour. No Hard Feelings, which hits theaters June 23, follows Lawrence’s character Maddie as she tries to bring a wealthy couple’s geeky 19-year-old son out of his shell before heading to college. Morales plays Lawrence’s best friend Sara. “I was really excited to do it,” she says.
As for what it’s like playing J.Law’s best friend? “Working with Jennifer was really good,” Morales says of the experience. “We played best friends in the movie, but had some real heart-to-hearts.”
When Morales isn’t acting, filming, writing, and directing (she cowrote, directed, and starred in Language Lessons, and directed Hulu’s Plan B), the multihyphenate turns much her time and energy to activism and raising awareness on social media. “I think people don’t, especially a lot of people my age or younger, are not watching the news,” she explains. “They’re not getting their information from places outside of social media, so I feel that if I can spread, can inform or educate or help anybody, that I might as well do it."
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That said, Morales asserts she tries to not “overdo it” on her platforms. “I’m not a newscaster—I’m not that Natalie Morales, I’m a different Natalie Morales,” she jokes (there is indeed a newscaster and The Talk cohost also named Natalie Morales). “But there are things that are important to me.
“Having people post about what’s going on in Cuba, in support of EveryTown [for Gun Safety], the incredible attack on LGBTQ people in this country in the last year, it makes me feel like we’re a community,” Morales says. “Social media is so awful in so many ways, so I might as well use it to make us feel more connected instead of more separate.”
Morales could probably talk activism forever, but she’s just as enthusiastic to discuss beauty. “I’m so excited to talk about my skin care routine because it’s genuinely something I’d put effort into and I’ve tried to perfect,” she says, though she admits it hasn’t always been like that. “For a long time, I was one of those people who was like, Just a makeup wipe is fine at the end of the night. But that’s not true! It really does affect your skin negatively, so now I’m trying to be better, and since I do wear a lot of makeup when I’m on set, it’s important for me.”
Morales even considers her newly perfected beauty regimen to be pretty much ADHD-proof. “I have ADHD, so it’s hard for me to establish any kind of routine, but I’ve seen actual results in what I’ve been doing, so I’m going to stick to it as much as I can,” she says.
Ahead, Natalie Morales shares her tried-and-true skin care regimen for Glamour’s Drop the Routine.
My cleansers
I don’t wash my face with any products in the morning. I only wash it with water and a washcloth or with micellar water. Trader Joe’s has these great micellar cleanser wipes, so I use those first. At night I usually double-cleanse, and if I have a lot of makeup on, will use E.L.F.’s Holy Hydration Makeup Melting Cleansing Balm to take off eye makeup. Then I’ll double- or triple-wash and use Eminence Clear Skin Probiotic Cleanser.
My toner
The thing that I’ve noticed the most results from is the Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant. It’s done wonders for my skin. It’s really strong, and can dry out my skin, so you have to ease yourself into it. I do this maybe twice a week, and never on the same nights—I’ll just do it one night, with a pad, and use just moisturizer the next night. It’s especially good for blackheads or any clogged skin; it makes a huge difference, especially in my pore size.
My moisturizers
Depending on how my skin is doing—if it feels really dry and it really needs some help—I’ll do the Weleda Skin Food. I do just a little bit and I really warm it up in my hands and make it almost liquidy, then press it into my skin.
If my skin feels less dry, I will either do the Plum Plump Hyaluronic Cream from Glow Recipe, which is really nice, or The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors.
My face oil
Depending on if it’s winter or how my skin’s doing, I like to use face oils, and I use Kypris Beauty Elixir. My longtime friend and sometimes makeup artist, Kim Bragalone got this for me and I really, really like it. I wear that during the day, usually under makeup, and sometimes will use it at night.
My spot treatment
If I have a zit or something, I use the salicylic acid gel from Clinique. That’s been a really good one.
My SPF
If I’m going to leave my house, which does happen on occasion, I always wear sunblock. That’s a key thing. I just got mine, and I’m obsessed with it: the E.L.F. Skin Suntouchable Whoa Glow SPF 30 Sunscreen. It’s great, and it leaves your skin kind of glowy. You kind of don’t need to do any makeup, and it doesn’t leave a white cast, which is the problem I have with so many of these things. And it’s both sun protection and a makeup primer, so I use it under makeup sometimes.
I’ll also do the Ilia Skin Tint, which is my everyday “sunblocky” makeup. I love how it looks on my face.
