And “classically not beautiful” is a fancy term for saying ugly. And denouncing you. And erasing you.
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.
More Viola Davis Quotes
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We as artists cannot be politicians. We as artists can only be truth-tellers.
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I’ve been to acting school and I think that at the end of the day, when you just focus on the work and you’re comfortable with who you are, that at some point someone’s going to recognize your talent and give you an opportunity.
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Womanhood is you. Womanhood is everything that’s inside of you.
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I’ve always just simply seen myself as an actor. And I believe that it serves me well to just think in terms of my craft. If hypothetically, I saw myself only as a sex symbol, or as some other limited stereotype, I think I would feel like a complete failure.
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That’s why there’s so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves.
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You cannot live to please everyone else. You have to edify, educate and fulfill your own dreams and destiny.
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Cicely Tyson was my inspiration to become an actor.
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They 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.
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And that’s what people want to see when they go to the theater. I believe at the end of the day, they want to see themselves – parts of their lives they can recognize. And I feel if I can achieve that, it’s pretty spectacular.
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If the opportunity is not out there for you to play it, then you don’t see it.
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Every artist, true artist, struggles with an overwhelming sense of feeling like you’re not worthy.
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I’ve been in this business 25 years. I’ve been eking out a living doing Broadway, off-Broadway… I’ve seen the unemployment line a lot.
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I 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.
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One 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.
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Relationships change us and make us grow.
VIOLA DAVIS






