That worries me an awful lot. If people misunderstand our intentions [in Black Snake Moan], especially regarding my character, then they're essentially exploiting an already exploited and abused woman. So it's a huge concern for me.

My dream role would probably be a psycho killer, because the whole thing I love about movies is that you get to do things you could never do in real life, and that would be my way of vicariously experiencing being a psycho killer. Also, it's incredibly romantic.

I can't think of anything that I turned down that became big and successful.

I think I am naturally attracted to things that are a little bit out of this world.

I think everybody who really wants to change things has to allow themselves to be angry in a constructive way, and you have to fully understand the thing you're trying to change. We really need to get serious about this now; there needs to be real, effective programs. I think there needs to be a little bit more strategy involved and a little more realism, to be pragmatic and realistic, looking at the way we as women contribute to the problem. Once the second half of the population stops doing it, it's going to end.

To be honest, I don't usually do very much research, especially if I'm working with a director who also wrote the screenplay. They've usually done a tonne of research. And they'll tell you about it from their perspective which is better than doing your own research.

Most people don't walk around knowing what other people think about them, and I don't think it's healthy to know what faceless strangers who you'll never meet say about you.