“Black or white good parts are hard to come by. A good actor with a good opportunity has a shot; without the opportunity it doesn’t matter how good you are.”

I wasn’t allowed to go to movies when I was kid; my father was a minister. 101 Dalmatians and King of Kings, that was the extent of it.

I say luck is when an opportunity comes along and you’re prepared for it.

I’ve worked with children all my life.

Learn to laugh at your failures, smile at your wins and don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself.

The chances you take, the people you meet, the people you love, the faith that you have. That’s what’s going to define you.

Wisdom is there at your fingertips, use it.

If you don’t trust the pilot, don’t go.

Never confuse movement with progress. Because you can run in place and not get anywhere.

Acting is just a way of making a living, the family is life.

Goals on the road to achievement cannot be achieved without discipline and consistency.

The only thing stopping you from achieving your dreams are the stories you keep telling yourself that you can’t. Don’t wait- act now. Regret nothing.

Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.

My ultimate life dream project is my kids. My family.

In Los Angeles, everyone is a star.

Got to be who you are in this world, no matter what.

I work hard for the audience. It’s entertainment. I don’t need validation.

My experience of singing, as an actor, was that there’s a different creative feeling of freedom. The acting thing is a bit more defined and cerebral. I can see why people would want to cross over. If you have so much freedom on stage then perhaps you want to be confined a bit, and vice versa.

In my early years, there were a number of experiences that made me decide I could not afford the luxury of just being an actress. There were a number of issues I wanted to address. And I wanted to use my career as a platform.

When I told my mother that I wanted to be an actress, she said, you can’t live here and do that, and so I moved out. I was determined to prove her wrong because she was so sure that I was going to go astray. And that’s the juice that kept me going.

As an actress, you want to try new things. You don’t want to repeat yourself. That becomes more important to you, as you get older.

I have just wanted to be an actress. That’s always been my goal. I didn’t want to be famous.

I never felt scandal and confession were necessary to be an actress. I’ve never revealed my self or even my body in films. Mystery is very important.

For a long time, I was almost ashamed of being an actress. I felt like it was a shallow occupation. People would be watching my every move.

I’m always inspired by actresses who are older than me. Because I know that person has lived so much more life than I have. There’s a whole other toolbox.