That you will feel the validation of your external beauty but also get to the deeper business of being beautiful inside. There is no shade in that beauty.

I used to enjoy doing silly walks on the street with my friends. Like, you know, you're walking, and then you break out in something completely ridiculous, to kind of spook out the person walking by you. I can't really do that anymore.

It's great to have something to dress up for. You know, I spent three years in slacks at drama school, so now I like putting a dress on.

I never, in my wildest dreams, could I have thought that the first role I get out of school would lead to an Oscar nomination.

Everyone said, ‘Brace yourself, Lupita! Keep a granola bar in that clutch of yours!’ I didn’t really understand what they meant, and it was only once it was past that I realized that my body had been holding on by a thread to get through this very intense experience. Nothing can prepare you for awards season. The red carpet feels like a war zone, except you cannot fly or fight; you just have to stand there and take it.

I grew up in Nairobi, which is the capital of Kenya, so it's hustle and bustle, and there's always something going on.

The muscles you flex in theater are muscles that you really need. I must always find a way to get back there. It's irreplaceable.