It would certainly would be great to see more films featuring the black family and showing that we are capable of having that unit strong and present and beautiful, because that's so much of who we really are.

My priorities are really about creating balance in my home, making sure that I have enough time with my kids, making sure that I have the time to do the things that I want to do with my career, and to continue to make movies.

I learned there's a tremendous amount of sisterhood among Muslim women, which I thought was really beautiful.

Americans are in need of very objective information, and sometimes it's easier to absorb the message through entertainment and through a great story than through the news outlets [where] everything is sensationalized. Not only are you getting information that sort of defies stereotypes, but you're also getting a wonderful story with hopefully good performances.

Every woman deserves diamonds, and even if you can't afford to go out and buy diamonds for yourself or you don't have actual stone diamonds, I think when we look at ourselves we should refer to ourselves as a precious stone.

I try to do the same thing when I'm with young actors who are new and unsure. I try to do the same thing for them that I saw Laurence [Fishburne] and Angela [Dasset]do for all of us on Boyz n the Hood.

It's hard to judge yourself. Each Essence cover represents a different special moment in my life. One is about keeping it sexy in my 40s, so I'm not mad about that either.