Denise Richards, 54, Lives Life With No Regrets

Will we see Charlie at all in the new show? Are you in touch?

Oh, we’re always in touch. We have kids together. So even during our ups and downs, we would still be in touch. We’re always going to be in touch. We have our daughters. And they are so beautiful.

They’re so grown up, but from the episodes I saw, you’re definitely still parenting?

I'll always worry about my girls. When they’re younger, you worry about different things. When they start walking, you worry, Oh my gosh, they're gonna fall and hit their head. As they grow, the worry —  it changes. So as a mom and a parent, and I think most parents would probably relate to this … that worry never goes away. My mom [Joni, who died in 2007 from kidney cancer] told me that, too. It doesn't go away.

What’s your favorite way to spend the day? 

I’m a homebody. I love being at home with the kids, and the animals — even if it’s a day of bingeing something. Cooking at home and just hanging out with the family.

What do you like to cook most?

It depends. If it’s Sami, she’s a vegetarian, so I'll do something vegetarian. She loves pasta, rice, but also artichokes. I'm really good at artichokes. I steam them, cut them in half, bake them, and then I broil them and put a little bit of balsamic vinegar on them. She loves that. She loves my mashed potatoes. 

What’s the secret to making good mashed potatoes?

Lots of butter — and good butter. I do unsalted, like a European butter usually. It’s a little bit more expensive, but I’m telling you, it makes a good mashed potato.

Would you like to have a cooking show?

I would love a cooking show. It’d be a disaster, but I’d love a cooking show. I say this on my show, that I feel I could be relatable to all the people watching cooking shows because they make it look so easy. It’s not easy.

Being always on camera, what’s the secret to always looking good?

My go-to every day — I love a sunscreen with a little tint that gives a little glow. I love the Supergoop! and Done By Dorfman. I like a very, very ’90s dewy look on my face. I like the dewy mascara, YSL and even clear gloss. I’m a makeup girl. My favorite gloss with a little bit of color is Bobbi Brown’s [High Shimmer Lip Gloss] Bellina. That was one that was always sold out all the time. Now, I buy quite a few tubes of it. I love Makeup By Mario [MoistureGlow Plumping Lip Serum], you can turn it like it’s a ChapStick. That’s a great go-to every day when you’re just running around. 

Have you changed your beauty routine as you’ve gotten older?

Here’s the thing. It’s not about getting older, it’s about getting more knowledgeable about what’s available. I do a lot of peptides. Copper is great for our hair and skin. I [also] do vitamin D. I’ve never been prone to acne, so I could put tons of oil on my face. Everyone’s skin is different. I have always been into skin care since I was 14 years old. I started taking care of my skin very simply because sometimes, simple is better than anything.

“It was such an incredible, surreal experience,” says Denise Richards of starring in “The World Is Not Enough” with Pierce Brosnan in 1999.

Courtesy Everett Collection

Do you have a favorite memory of being a Bond Girl? 

It was such an incredible, surreal experience to be part of such an iconic movie [1999’s The World Is Not Enough] and to travel the world to go to all these countries that I’d never been to and to meet all these fans that have watched every Bond movie. It was really humbling and wonderful. It really is a pinch-me moment where, Oh my gosh, I am part of this. [Bond producer] Barbara Broccoli is just an incredible woman, and she was just so lovely [to me] being part of the franchise. I had only been out of the country once when I got that movie, and to be able to travel the world promoting it, it was really an incredible experience. 

Is there a movie franchise today you’d like to be part of?

My husband really wants me to be in a Marvel movie. I wouldn’t mind that, either.

Would you want to be a good guy or bad guy?

Of course it’s kind of fun to have a little spice.