Skip to content

Top Navigation

PEOPLE.com PEOPLE.com
  • News
    • Coronavirus
    • Crime
    • Human Interest
    • Politics
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Country
    • Awards
    • Sports
    • Theater
    • Books
  • Coronavirus
  • Royals
  • Lifestyle
    • Style
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Health
    • Parents
    • Home
    • Real Estate
    • Pets
    • Food
    • Shopping
    • Tech
  • PeopleTV
  • Shopping
    • Coupons

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
Login
Logout
Subscribe

Explore PEOPLE.com

PEOPLE.com PEOPLE.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Every Tiara Worn at a Royal Wedding

      From Princess Beatrice to Meghan Markle Read More Next
    • Engineer Creates App To Translate Your Cat

      Find out what your cat is trying to tell you with a new cat app Read More Next
    • The Sweetest Photos of Princes Harry with Diana

      Princess Diana died when Harry was just 12 years old Read More Next
  • News

    News

    See all News

    Sean Connery's Cause of Death Revealed Weeks After He Dies at Age 90

    Sean Connery died on Oct. 31 at age 90
    • Coronavirus
    • Crime
    • Human Interest
    • Politics
  • Entertainment

    Entertainment

    See all Entertainment

    Coyote Ugly Turns 20: Where Is the Cast Now?

    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Country
    • Awards
    • Sports
    • Theater
    • Books
  • Coronavirus
  • Royals
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    See all Lifestyle

    Introducing ... PEOPLE's Products Worth the Hype

    • Style
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Health
    • Parents
    • Home
    • Real Estate
    • Pets
    • Food
    • Shopping
    • Tech
  • PeopleTV
  • Shopping

    Shopping

    • Coupons

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
Login
Logout
Sweepstakes

Follow us

People is on Community!
Text us for exclusive photos and videos, royal news, and way more.
Text: 212-479-1704
  1. People.com
  2. Awards
  3. SAG Awards 2017: Nominee Viola Davis' Most Inspiring Quotes

SAG Awards 2017: Nominee Viola Davis' Most Inspiring Quotes

The Fences star has earned more than a few nuggets of wisdom during her decades in the business
By Lydia Price
Updated January 27, 2017 02:14 PM
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet

1 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON REFUSING TO WASTE HER TIME

Credit: Rob Latour/REX/Shutterstock

"I don't have any time to stay up all night worrying about what someone who doesn't love me has to say about me."

— during an interview with Oprah Winfrey

PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly are hosting the official live pre-show for the SAG Awards on Sunday, Jan. 29, in partnership with TNT and sponsored by Dunkin' Donuts. Our red carpet special will start livestreaming at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 PT on PEOPLE.com, EW.com and the People/Entertainment Weekly Network (download the PEN app for your TV or phone). You can also watch it live on Twitter — follow us @PEOPLE!

1 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON EMBRACING FAILURE 

Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision for Producers Guild of America/AP

"I own my story. I own my failures. I'm not interested in being perfect. That's how I deal [with stress]. I don't put on a mask. I think that the effort to put on the mask is probably more detrimental than just being able to step up and admit your vulnerability in front of people who have enough empathy for you."

— to Vibe

2 of 15

3 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON HER EVOLUTION

Credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

"The only picture I have of myself as a kid in kindergarten is with a little seersucker and an expression that’s not really a smile, not really a frown, just something. But every time I look at the little girl, I always thought, ‘Oh, that’s a cute outfit.’ But she was always hungry, she was always shy, she was always kind of in the background, but inside she had big dreams bursting. And the only thing I could think about is that saying, 'What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls the butterfly.'"

— at her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony

3 of 15

Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

4 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON LEARNING TO GO EASY ON HERSELF 

Credit: Angela Weiss/Getty

"I got to a place of self-acceptance because I had no choice. I cornered myself. I got to the point where I was tired of beating myself up. I could not trade myself in for anyone else."

— to Yahoo Style

4 of 15

Advertisement

5 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON WHAT SHE WISHES SHE HAD KNOWN AS A TEEN

Credit: Amanda Edwards/WireImage

"I just look at women sometimes and I just want to ask them, 'Do you know how fabulous you are?' I look back at pictures of myself and I remember thinking, 'I was so fat when I was growing up. I was 165 pounds when I graduated from high school. I was a mess.' And then I look back at pictures of myself, and I'm like, 'You were fabulous.' I wish I would have known that then."

— to Elle

5 of 15

6 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON THE PEOPLE CHANGING THE FACE OF HOLLYWOOD

Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty

"You cannot win an Emmy for roles that are simply not there. So here’s to all the writers, the awesome people that are Ben Sherwood, Paul Lee, Peter Nowalk, Shonda Rhimes, people who have redefined what it means to be beautiful, to be sexy, to be a leading woman, to be black."

— while accepting the Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a drama

6 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

7 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON OWNING HER SEXUALITY ON TV 

Credit: Tim P. Whitby/Getty

"I saw [How to Get Away With Murder] as an opportunity way bigger than doing good work — I saw it as an opportunity for a dark-skinned actress of 50 to be in a role that’s sexualized, not sexy. There’s a difference between sexualized and sexy."

— to Tom Hanks during a Variety Actors on Actors discussion

7 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

8 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON APPRECIATING WHAT SHE HAS 

Credit: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

"All of the hardships I've gone through in life — I can appreciate life so much more because of that. To me, it was almost God's gift, to give me the kind of life I was given. I mean, I appreciate love, I appreciate friendships, I appreciate having a home. I remember not having food — so to me the joys of life are a lot simpler than other people would assume they would be."

—during an interview with Oprah Winfrey

8 of 15

Advertisement

9 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON WOMANHOOD 

"[Do] not live someone else’s life and someone else’s idea of what womanhood is. Womanhood is you. Womanhood is everything that's inside of you."

— to Buzzfeed

9 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

10 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON HER WORK WITH THE 'HUNGER IS' INITIATIVE 

Credit: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

"They say, to serve is to love. I think to serve is to heal, too."

—at Variety's Power of Women luncheon

10 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

11 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON WANTING TO SEE REPRESENTATIONS OF HERSELF 

Credit: Williams & Hirakawa

"I want to be in the story. I think I deserve to be in that story, and I believe my story deserves to be told."

— to PEOPLE

11 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

12 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON BEING HER TRUE SELF 

Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty

“I truly believe that the privilege of a lifetime is being who you are and I just recently embraced that at 51.”

— while accepting her Critics' Choice award for best supporting actress

12 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

13 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON LEAVING A LEGACY 

Credit: Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage

“Living out loud is not playing Annalise Keating on How To Get Away With Murder, it’s not being Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad, it’s not getting an Oscar. Living out loud is living a life that’s bigger than yourself. Living out loud is long after you’re gone — and trust me, everyone in this room, you’re going to be dead a lot longer than you’re alive, even if you live to be 100 years old — you leave something on this Earth that’s bigger than yourself. And that’s a big message in this town.”

— at the Rape Foundation's Annual Brunch

13 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

14 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON HER ADVICE FOR OTHER MOTHERS 

Credit: Jim Spellman/WireImage

"Forgive yourself — every minute of the day, every day, that would be No. 1. You always focus on your mistakes as a mom, and you just have to know that you're doing the best you can with what you know."

– on Ellen

14 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

15 of 15

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

ON PRACTICING HER ART NO MATTER WHAT 

Credit: Jason Merritt/Getty

"I see myself as an actor. No matter what is going on in the business, I will find a way to practice my art. And all of the actors of color that I know don’t place any limitations on themselves either. So regardless of what is going on with the Academy, regardless of what is going on in Hollywood, they will find a way to be excellent. We always have and we always will."

— while speaking backstage at the Screen Actors Guild awards

15 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Lydia Price

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 15 ON REFUSING TO WASTE HER TIME
2 of 15 ON EMBRACING FAILURE 
3 of 15 ON HER EVOLUTION
4 of 15 ON LEARNING TO GO EASY ON HERSELF 
5 of 15 ON WHAT SHE WISHES SHE HAD KNOWN AS A TEEN
6 of 15 ON THE PEOPLE CHANGING THE FACE OF HOLLYWOOD
7 of 15 ON OWNING HER SEXUALITY ON TV 
8 of 15 ON APPRECIATING WHAT SHE HAS 
9 of 15 ON WOMANHOOD 
10 of 15 ON HER WORK WITH THE 'HUNGER IS' INITIATIVE 
11 of 15 ON WANTING TO SEE REPRESENTATIONS OF HERSELF 
12 of 15 ON BEING HER TRUE SELF 
13 of 15 ON LEAVING A LEGACY 
14 of 15 ON HER ADVICE FOR OTHER MOTHERS 
15 of 15 ON PRACTICING HER ART NO MATTER WHAT 

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message
PEOPLE.com

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing
  • Sitemap
  • Student Offer this link opens in a new tab

Connect

People is on Community!
Text us for exclusive photos and videos, royal news, and way more.
Text: 212-479-1704
Newsletter Sign Up
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
© Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab. People is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab Manage Push Notificationsthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab

Manage Push Notifications

If you would like to opt out of browser push notifications, please refer to the following instructions specific to your device and browser: Google Chrome and Android, Firefox, Safari, or Microsoft Edge.
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://people.com

View image

SAG Awards 2017: Nominee Viola Davis' Most Inspiring Quotes
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.