Jurnee Smollett-Bell

“Vanessa Williams in person is like... the camera cannot capture how gorgeous this woman is! She is just so breathtaking.”

“I try to give each performance my own soul, to bring a truth to my character. Hopefully, when I bring that much truth to a character, it resonates with somebody, and it sparks some kind of emotion in them.”

“I don't really think about the critics or the commercial success.”

“With 'Underground,' we see that the wounds that we all, as a nation, inflicted upon our brothers and sisters during slavery have not been healed.”

“They did laugh; they did fall in love. And while they were under incredibly oppressive conditions, they constantly were trying to steal pleasures. When you go back to the slave narratives, and you read books like the 'Bullwhip Days' or 'Incidents in the Life of the Slave Girl,' they will share what life was like, and it's a 365-degree view.”

“There's a lot of progress happening in TV. You have amazing shows like 'How to Get Away With Murder.' You have people like Shonda Rhimes, Lee Daniels with 'Empire,' and Jason Katims with 'Friday Night Lights' and 'Parenthood.' You have people behind the scenes writing complex women.”

“I am oftentimes the ear for some people that I know and love. Which I like being. I don't know if I'd like being a marriage counselor, though, because that's too deep for me.”

“I'm very grateful to have been able to work with so many talented filmmakers and actors during my career. I've learned so much from them. It's been my college, in a way.”

“My little brothers loved baseball. I'm not as big on that as basketball or football, but I understand the game.”

“I always said, 'Whenever I get pregnant, I'm going to embrace all of the body changes that happen.' My focus has not been on any sort of snap-back or anything like that, because your body won't be the same after giving birth, and if anything, that's something to be celebrated, embraced, and owned.”

“I would be ignorant to say colorism doesn't exist; it's gross and disgusting.”

“I wouldn't be able to tackle a character like Rosalee on 'Underground' without having tackled the many characters I've played before.”

“I'm a nature lover.”

“I'm such a huge fan of Gap! My mom used to dress me in Gap overalls that I would wear all the time, and now the idea of bringing my son into that tradition is so ironic and full-circle for me.”

“I wouldn't even call myself a former child star. I was a child actor; there's a difference.”

“I'm very opinionated and passionate when it comes to my characters.”

“I think, as human beings, we try to hide our flaws and try to present this perfect person, this person we wish we were, to our spouse when that causes so many troubles.”

“There are so many people who will try and make you feel like your opinion doesn't matter, and I've learned how important it is to use your voice.”

“My mom is African-American, Native-American, Irish, and Creole, and my father is of Jewish, Russian, and Polish descent. It's made me who I am. Because of my diverse background, I think I can relate to many different people, different stories, and different communities.”

“I come from a family of four brothers, so I like sports.”