KiKi Layne

“I always have to find things that I relate to and understand in the characters that I play; otherwise, it won't feel that authentic.”

“I'm a huge fan of 'The Avengers,' but 'Black Panther' was so special to me.”

“It's amazing to me how quickly the industry will try to put you into a box. It's like, I did 'Beale Street.' And they decided now, all of a sudden, 'Oh, okay. KiKi Layne does those little quiet indie dramas.' I'm like, 'No! That's just where I got started.'”

“I'm definitely a person, even when I need help, I got to be going through it to finally ask for help.”

“It would be tough to live a life without any of the people you loved, where you can't even build new relationships. That connectivity is so important as humans. I wouldn't want to live like that.”

“People will definitely know that my art has something to say.”

“To me Kate Spade represents a woman who still has stuff to get done. She's like, 'yeah I'm stylish but I need to be comfortable and able to move.' I'm excited to be a part of a brand that's meaningful to women in that way.”

“Hollywood has had a very limited way of telling stories about black people.”

“I used to climb trees and ride my bike way too fast downhill.”

“I'm very grateful to Barry Jenkins, who took a chance on me.”

“I love big jewelry trends and moments, especially some gold hoops.”

“Instead of asking for permission, we're seeing more artists and creatives taking control over the stories we tell.”

“I'm hopeful that, at the end of my career, wherever it takes me, there's a lot of variety.”

“Fashion, film, and music - all these industries have ways of putting us in a box. Ultimately my goal is to push those boundaries.”

“'Beale Street' is such an intimate story that I think it requires intimate connections between the artists that are a part of it.”

“That is the thing that brought the Black community through so many of the hardships that we've faced historically. It's the ability to love and laugh and experience joy still in so many ways.”

“For whatever reason, Hollywood has had a very limited view of what life is and what certain people in certain roles, what they look like.”

“As an actor, my commitment is to be really mindful of how I'm representing Black women. It's the heart of my drive, and my career is to expand how Black women have been represented.”

“When you're a Black actress, the box that we often get put in is so small. And me being a dark-skinned Black actress, the opportunities become so limited in a way that is just wrong. It's not fair. I'm so capable of playing a wide variety of roles. It comes down to whether or not I'm given the opportunity to do it.”

“I'm very thankful I went to college, because I've seen the difference that it makes for me in the professional world. After graduation, I was building a name for myself in the Chicago theater scene, but there was always this pull to L.A.”