It's a career that's enticing because you go on stage, for example, and people clap. You get that affirmation, but you can't go into acting for that because it's really your own self-belief that's going to get you through.

Every director is completely different.

Acting is a freelance career... you never stop having to prove yourself and fight for work.

I'm so fair that I didn't go in the sun as a child. When all my friends were on the beach, I was going to ballet. The teachers there didn't like you going in the sun, so I never did.

You do remember things that people say in movies. You remember particular lines and things that are funny. But, you also remember really strong images. Images have a way of bypassing your brain and hitting you emotionally. There are so many things from movies that are remembered, that are just looks on people's faces or incredible vistas or beautiful pictures. That is a very important part of cinema.

Theres such big pressure on people who are incredibly famous, on those who have people sitting outside their front door and taking photos every time they move.

Around the time of 'The Lord of the Rings,' it was a shock to me just how big it is to be on that kind of media juggernaut. It was a big thing and the scrutiny was shocking.