Ever since I was maybe nine or 10 years old, I'd say, 'I'm gonna be an actor, and I'm gonna go to Julliard, and I'm gonna be in movies.' My parents never said, 'What's your backup plan?' — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
As black women, we're miles behind our white counterparts in being offered the space to create and craft female characters in major blockbuster films. — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
I had been getting relaxers since I was eight or nine. I had no clue. It was a personal mission to really find out… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
As a girl, I remember looking up to pop singers, and they all had long, straight weaves and light skin. And I thought, 'That's… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
When you have filmmakers like Justin Simien, writers, producers, actresses like Lena Waithe, who are people of color, they're creating their own content and… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
I think, no matter who you are, at some point in your life you've probably said, 'OK, well, who am I, and where do… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
It's important, as a young person of color, to see yourself reflected in the media. — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
I'm influenced by many things. Simply turning on the television, I feel inundated with images and messages to be a certain way. So I… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
Whatever it is you do, study it, learn the ins and outs of it, and really work on building your craft. — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
I, for myself, have wanted to get more into producing because I want to be a part of the conversation and be one of… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
In working with Nick Cannon, he's such a generous guy, a generous actor, and he was very protective. — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
You have to really understand and appreciate who are you are and know who you are and what you have to offer people -… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
You have to be resilient to be a black person in America. The thing about being resilient is being able to fall apart and… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
An actor hears 'no' more often than the average person. A black human and a black woman on top of that? That's a lot… — Teyonah Parris Copy Share Image
