Viola Davis Quotes

Even on the worst days I am without a doubt still happier doing this than I am doing anything else. On acting.

I am not interested in entertaining people. I think being an actor provides an opportunity to give people an experience they can connect to, reflect on, learn from, laugh at.

'Sophie's Choice' is actually the reason I became an actress.

The reason I'm an actor and am trying to make my way in drama is to move people, to affect people, to gain a response - so these people who come up to you in the street are your audience.

I became an actress to provoke people and move people and to tell the stories.

It's not a matter of becoming a superstar. Fame and money aren't the purpose of all this. No actor's going to say, 'I don't want to be famous.' But the main purpose for doing what I'm doing is the passion in the work.

When I discovered acting, I decided that's what I wanted to do above everything else. It was the first time I was passionate about anything.

For me, acting is not a job. It is something I love. I don't do these things for awards or rewards. I do them because I love challenges.

All I've ever wanted to do as an actor was move people.

If it was a choice between making movies and doing nothing, he'd probably still wish me to make movies, So he made me keep going.

I didn't become an actor to be famous. I genuinely love acting and never expected to make a penny at it.

I knew I could live no other way, that the one thing I wanted was to act and do it well.

My work is to reach people with ideas, hopes, dreams, encouragement, insight, and revelation. That's what an actor wants to do.

The artists who stand out to me have a passion for what they do. There are a lot of people who can sing. It's just like when you go to church and people are singing because it sounds good, not because it feels good. There's a difference.

I discovered that I act because I really love to act. I don't act because maybe it will get me a magazine cover or that I can get on a talk show.

At this point, I'm happy to be part of something special. As an actor I liked to choose scripts that I'm passionate about.

I will keep playing as long as my body lets me, and as long as I'm wanted by my listeners. Because music is the only thing that keeps me going.

Acting should be an end in itself.

I began as a journalist for my pocketbook and a poet for my soul.

Passion is the thing that sustains you in acting. If you're doing it for fame and money, don't even bother because it will never happen. The last thing I ever expected was to be paid for this.

I started acting without any vocation. I continued out of love.

Only be an actor if you can't be happy doing anything else. I don't think you should be an actor if you want to be actor. I think you should be an actor if you have to be an actor.

Making films has never just been a job to me; it is my life. I have some interests outside of acting - I sing and I've written books, for instance - but acting is what keeps me going: it's what I do; it gives life purpose.

I'm really interested in writing a piece of music that will move you, that will really move you. That is really the only reason that I'm writing music.

The prime goal of an author is the same as a musician, which is to emotionally connect with the reader in some way or another.