I really wanted to show [in fences] a marriage that is working. Not perfect, but working.
VIOLA DAVISI really wanted to show [in fences] a marriage that is working. Not perfect, but working.
VIOLA DAVISThey say the two most important days in a person’s life were the day you were born and the day you discover why you were born.
VIOLA DAVISI do believe that there are African Americans who have thick accents. My mom has a thick accent; my relatives have thick accents. But sometimes you have to adjust when you go into the world of film, TV, theatre, in order to make it accessible to people.
VIOLA DAVISOne of the people I’ve always wanted to emulate in pursuing that dream was Meryl Streep, in terms of the different types of roles she’s been able to play and the number of different stories she’s been able to tell.
VIOLA DAVISI think that what happens so often on screen is high-stake moments tends to look too pretty. And I just don’t think it’s honest.
VIOLA DAVISI can’t deal with actors! I can’t deal with myself. We’re neurotic and miserable… I love doing what I’m doing, but while I’m doing it, I’m miserable.
VIOLA DAVISThey say the two most important days in a person’s life were the day you were born and the day you discover why you were born.
VIOLA DAVISTyler Perry’s ‘Madea Goes to Jail!’ Which, I have to tell you, of everything that I’ve ever done in my career, that’s the only thing that’s perked up the ears of my nieces and nephews. That is it, that’s done it for them. That made me a bona fide star in their eyes!
VIOLA DAVISYour internal dialogue has got to be different from what you say. And, you know, in film, hopefully that registers and speaks volumes. It’s always the unspoken word and what’s happening behind someone’s eyes that makes it so rich.
VIOLA DAVISAs an artist, you’ve got to see the mess. That’s what we do. We get a human being, and it’s like putting together a puzzle. And the puzzle has got to be a mixture, a multifaceted mixture of human emotions, and not all of it is going to be pretty.
VIOLA DAVISAnything can be achieved with a good, healthy dose of courage.
VIOLA DAVISWhen you see what the deficit is, then you have to do something about it.
VIOLA DAVISWomanhood is you. Womanhood is everything that’s inside of you.
VIOLA DAVISWhen your passion and drive are bigger than your fears, you just dive.
VIOLA DAVISSometimes you take a job for the money, sometimes you take it for the location, sometimes you take it for the script; there are just a number of reasons, and ultimately what you see is the whole landscape of it. But I can tell you from behind the scenes – that’s what it is, as an actor.
VIOLA DAVISI guess they say, “Necessity is the mother of invention” because you have two stark choices when you find yourself in a really desperate situation. You can either fold and cave-in to it or you can become really passionate about getting out of it.
VIOLA DAVIS