What counts in Hollywood is box office. It doesn't really matter what people think of you as an actor because, as long as you have been in a movie that has made money, you will always get another job.

I do give myself a break in my personal life but I think in work, if you don't push yourself you get bored and want to do something else.

Brad Pitt seems to have no problem getting parts that he wants, nor does Angelina Jolie. Not that I'm saying I look like either of them, but I just don't think that it has anything to do with that. It's the emotions or characters you are able to take on that will get you work, not necessarily the way you look. Obviously, beauty can open doors - it is Hollywood, after all - but that's not enough.

Looking back at it now, I really feel like it was a gift because I don’t know if I have the talent to become a prima ballerina. It’s such a hard job to have. I don’t have any regrets about it.

I come from a very small rural village in northern Germany, and being an actor never even seemed like a possibility. I thought you would have to live in a big city, or be discovered somewhere, or be born into an artistic family, which I certainly wasn't.

Every actor you learn from, take something from everyone - big actor or not. Whether they're big movie stars or not doesn't really matter.

I consider myself a 'local' actor in France. I started out in France, I went to drama school in France and the French film community was very welcoming to me when I was a young actress.