It's very, very rare in this business [moviemaking] where a script lands on your lap ready to go.

My first date was with a girl named Cessi. We'd had a beautiful relationship over the phone all summer long. Then she came home and we met to go out for the first time to the movies. When I saw her I was petrified. I couldn't even look her in the eye to talk to her.

I think people read the tabloids because they want to see you eating a burger, or out of your makeup or doing something stupid because they just want to see that you're like everyone else. And that's okay. I don't want to catch myself anymore saying that my life is hard, because the good far outweighs the bad in my life. And it's easier to focus on those things, on the things that are important.

I always wanted to be an actor and I'd never dreamt that not only would I be able to do this for a living, but also on top of that I'd be able to choose and steer the course of my own career.

Love is a sudden revelation: a kiss is always a discovery

It was invaluable to have a dear friend who you have known for over a decade, be a partner in a film like Titanic. To have somebody that talented to work against, who's also your friend and who you know you have the best intentions for and vice versa, and who you intrinsically trust to give you their forthright honest opinion about what we're both doing - all that's something you can't really buy.

I want to be the perfect child. I owe so much to my parents and the way I was brought up.