--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's always hard to be private in public…" description: "\"It's always hard to be private in public, which is what acting is because you have to do thing really emotionally naked.\" — Viola Davis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/viola-davis-1174_acting_it-s-always-hard-to-be-private-in-public_1498330.png" --- # It's always hard to be private in public, which is what… ![“It's always hard to be private in public, which is what acting is because you have to do thing really emotionally naked.” quote by Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/viola-davis-1174_acting_it-s-always-hard-to-be-private-in-public_1498330.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/viola-davis-1174_acting_it-s-always-hard-to-be-private-in-public_1498330.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/viola-davis-1174_acting_it-s-always-hard-to-be-private-in-public_1498330.png) > “It's always hard to be private in public, which is what acting is because you have to do thing really emotionally naked.” [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Acting requires exposing one's emotions, making privacy difficult in public. **In simple terms:** Acting makes you emotionally vulnerable. Key Takeaway Accept vulnerability as part of authentic performance. Themes vulnerability performance privacy Mood introspective empathetic Type inspirational cautionary When to use this quote - theater - film - public speaking Key Concepts emotional honesty public persona Questions to Reflect On - How do you protect personal boundaries on stage? - Can vulnerability enhance connection with audience? A Different Perspective Audience expectations may limit true expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) [Emotionally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotionally/) [Emotionally Naked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotionally-naked-3757841/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Hard Private](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-private-1846225/) [Naked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naked/) [Public Acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-acting-5487525/) ## Related quotes > [An acting teacher once taught me that to be an effective actor, you have to be willing to appear naked... he meant emotionally naked.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-cranston/an-acting-teacher-once-taught-me-that-to-be-an-effective-actor-you/) [Bryan Cranston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-cranston/) > [I had to be physically and emotionally naked, show both my body and soul. I felt emotionally vulnerable and physically exposed, it was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dakota-johnson/i-had-to-be-physically-and-emotionally-naked-show-both-my-body-and/) [Dakota Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dakota-johnson/) > [“They had been under physical strain for the last few days — days full of brutality, fear, and death. Their lives were at risk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-r-sanford/they-had-been-under-physical-strain-for-the-last-few-days-days-full/) [James R. Sanford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-r-sanford/) > [I'm very expressive, but I'm also a very private person. It is so hard to be private in the entertainment business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-eaton/i-m-very-expressive-but-i-m-also-a-very-private-person-it-is-so-hard-2/) [Shirley Eaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-eaton/) > [I like to be private. In my job, it's just hard to be private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quinton-jackson/i-like-to-be-private-in-my-job-it-s-just-hard-to-be-private/) [Quinton Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quinton-jackson/) > [One big disturbance, I think, between L.A. and New York is that New York is so condensed and together that it's very hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-mcmillen/one-big-disturbance-i-think-between-l-a-and-new-york-is-that-new-york/) [Michael C. McMillen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-mcmillen/) > [I'm very expressive, but I'm also a very private person. It is so hard to be private in the entertainment business. I'm really glad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-eaton/i-m-very-expressive-but-i-m-also-a-very-private-person-it-is-so-hard/) [Shirley Eaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-eaton/) > [You have to fight really hard for a private life, and sometimes you don't have one. It just gets to you after a while.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carpenter/you-have-to-fight-really-hard-for-a-private-life-and-sometimes-you/) [John Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carpenter/) > [That's why there's so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-why-there-s-so-much-bad-acting-out-there-because-you-could-see/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [Just emotionally, as amazing as it is to win the World Cup, it's emotionally draining in many ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-rapinoe/just-emotionally-as-amazing-as-it-is-to-win-the-world-cup-it-s/) [Megan Rapinoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-rapinoe/) > [If someone hates or loves something, then right on. I can't rob them of that. I'm not going to try and change their mind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alanis-morissette/if-someone-hates-or-loves-something-then-right-on-i-can-t-rob-them-of/) [Alanis Morissette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alanis-morissette/) > [“Authors: The only people you thank for leaving you emotionally devastated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/love-the-stacks-bookstore/authors-the-only-people-you-thank-for-leaving-you-emotionally/) [Love The Stacks Bookstore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/love-the-stacks-bookstore/) > [“Of course I would fall for Captain Emotionally Constipated. I could train a rock to hold more affection for me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-m-shea/of-course-i-would-fall-for-captain-emotionally-constipated-i-could/) [K.M. Shea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-m-shea/) > [There are ups and downs to the season and how you handle those things emotionally is huge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lee/there-are-ups-and-downs-to-the-season-and-how-you-handle-those-things/) [David Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lee/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) ## More by Viola Davis > [I look back at pictures of myself and I remember thinking, "I was so fat when I was growing up. I was 165 pounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-look-back-at-pictures-of-myself-and-i-remember-thinking-i-was-so/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am not a glam woman - this definitely is a mask I put on for the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-not-a-glam-woman-this-definitely-is-a-mask-i-put-on-for-the/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-was-bullied-at-school-the-black-girl-in-central-falls-rhode-island/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [That's why there's so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-why-there-s-so-much-bad-acting-out-there-because-you-could-see/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I want my work to reflect my level of gifts and talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-want-my-work-to-reflect-my-level-of-gifts-and-talent/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I don’t want anyone putting any limits on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-don-t-want-anyone-putting-any-limits-on-me/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [ 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… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-that-s-why-august-wilson-named-her-rose-in-fences-i-really-do/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/when-you-re-working-as-an-actor-you-don-t-think-that-when-you-get-out/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-suffered-from-low-self-esteem-for-much-of-my-life-and-now-to-feel/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I tell my daughter every morning, 'Now, what are the two most important parts of you?' 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I felt like it was relentless, I never felt like I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/it-was-hard-that-confrontation-scene-in-fences-that-was-a-hard-one-i/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am addicted to any facial product that's anti-aging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-addicted-to-any-facial-product-that-s-anti-aging/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) [Explore all 279 Viola Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## More Acting quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [Acting is a grind, just like music is a grind. Sometimes it takes longer than what you can give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/acting-is-a-grind-just-like-music-is-a-grind-sometimes-it-takes/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Writing is something I took up rather than anything I had an inclination toward. I like acting -delivering someone else's message - but writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/writing-is-something-i-took-up-rather-than-anything-i-had-an/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. 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Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) > [It definitely helps to have the acting experience going into singing, because when you're singing, you have to portray the emotion you were feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-newman/it-definitely-helps-to-have-the-acting-experience-going-into-singing/) [Ryan Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-newman/) > [The show was number one in the ratings, Gordon Russell was our head writer, the story lines were magnificent and the acting most exciting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-storm/the-show-was-number-one-in-the-ratings-gordon-russell-was-our-head/) [Michael Storm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-storm/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [I do not believe in public shaming. 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