You absolutely feel, as a black actress, that you've got to ride the wave because there's just so few roles. I hate… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
I didn't aspire to be just a celebrity; I aspired to be an actress... I always wanted to be respected as someone… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
The reason I became an actress is because I wanted my acting to reflect life as it is. I want to put… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
That's why I do what I do, and that's why I wanted to be an actress from the time I was six… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
You have to understand being an actress, and being an African American actress of a certain hue, I think that you have… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
Ultimately, it's not your job, as an actress, to satisfy people's expectations or image of who you should be. Even in your… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
I always say that, like a scientist or anyone, you always want to be the problem-solver. You feel like, if you solve… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
You want to be able to really tackle a character and make it a fully-dimensional human being who is complicated, funny, and… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
You can't be perceived as 'the black actress who doesn't get the same kind of roles as the white actress.' You gotta… — Viola Davis Copy Share Image
I look back at pictures of myself and I remember thinking, "I was so fat when I was growing up. I was 165 pounds… — Viola Davis Copy Share
I was bullied at school. The black girl in Central Falls, Rhode Island, in 1973. There'd be 8 or 10 boys; I would count… — Viola Davis Copy Share
That's why there's so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves. — Viola Davis Copy Share
I think that's why August [Wilson] named her Rose [in "Fences"]; I really do. She's a rose in her sweetness and her kindness and… — Viola Davis Copy Share
When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get… — Viola Davis Copy Share
I suffered from low self-esteem for much of my life. And now to feel like maybe something that I'm projecting or saying could mean… — Viola Davis Copy Share
I tell my daughter every morning, 'Now, what are the two most important parts of you?' And she says, 'My head and my heart.'… — Viola Davis Copy Share
I started a production company out of necessity, the need for great narratives for actors of color. — Viola Davis Copy Share
That's always the biggest surprise when people meet me: how buoyant I am and how fun and light I am. — Viola Davis Copy Share
When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get… — Viola Davis Copy Share
It was hard, that confrontation scene [in "Fences"], that was a hard one. I felt like it was relentless, I never felt like I… — Viola Davis Copy Share
