I would love to have a career that's governed by the material; I always want to be part of stories that I feel are worthwhile.

What I've learned from myself is that I don't have to be anybody else. Myself is good enough.

Whoopi Goldberg looked like me, she had hair like mine, she was dark like me. I'd been starved for images of myself. I'd grown up watching a lot of American TV.

I've had somebody say, "I want you at my wedding, but I don't want you to pull focus, so wear jeans!" Losing my anonymity is something that's proving to be very challenging.... It's good for your soul to walk around unnoticed; there's so much you can't do when everybody knows who you are. And I so miss those little things.

You win an Oscar, and immediately people ask how you feel. So you don't have time to actually feel anything because you have to generate a response. And then some of the feelings you have are so intimate and visceral, words don't really do them justice.

No matter where you're from, your dreams are valid.

Beautiful people have many advantages, but so do friendly people.