I never put myself in that box of you're an Oscar winner so you can only do this or that. That's one award, one night, and it does not define my career or it does not define me as an artist. I never wanted to get put in that Oscar box because that's a lonely place to be.

I also have been called that terrible "N" word straight to my face and not known what to do about it because it was just in like 1993 that someone called me that.

I never wanted to be a model. My modelling career was nothing but a stepping stone to my acting career and that's all I ever saw it as. A pointless rock in the river that has to be stepped on in order to get to the meaningful oasis of acting.

While being called beautiful is extremely flattering, I would much rather be noticed for my work as an actress.

I'm not afraid of portraying anything on-screen

My mother never wanted me to focus on my physical self. She always said that beauty is what you do.

It is very hard to separate one's self from a character. Sometimes the people closest to me have to be very understanding.