Viola Davis found it "frightening" realising her power and potential.
Viola Davis
The 'Fences' star used to think if she put herself down it would make her look more "humble" but now realises it is important to show how confident she is in herself and her abilities.
She said: "I think tapping into one's power and one's potential is a very frightening thing. And for women it's a very new thing. It is. I always used to feel that self-deprecation was an answer to humility - that people would see me as a humble person the more I put myself down.
"And people do say that, 'Oh! I ran into so-and-so and they kept saying, 'Oh, my work in this really sucked,' and they were great! I just thought it was so refreshing that they said that! And I often think to myself, what if someone says, 'You know what, I'm confident, I'm really happy about the work I did. I really felt like I gave it my best and it came out great,' the same way men do. Why is that not seen as humble?"
And the 51-year-old actress thinks it is important actors and actresses understand that whilst their work may not live up to their own expectations, they "deserve" whatever awards and accolades they get.
She added to The Observer magazine: "It's the waking up and understanding that OK, you may not be the best person out there, but you've put in enough work to understand that you deserve what you've got, that that is what is at the end of hard work.
"The happily ever after comes after you've done the work. And to literally understand, especially as a woman, that a closed mouth doesn't get fed, you've got to ask for what you want and expect to get it."
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