Lea Seydoux

“I don't have any preconceived ideas of myself. I just take things as they come.”

“I love being in the States because there's an emphasis on work. People are enthusiastic. They put heart into things.”

“For me, cinema's like a language - everyone has their own form of it.”

“As an actor, it's up to you to show that you can do something else. For me, the interesting actors don't always go where you expect to find them.”

“I love challenge. I love to be afraid before a film, before acting. I think always I want to experience fear. I've become addicted to this feeling.”

“I see that people now recognize me in the street. But it doesn't change me in the depth of my being.”

“Whether you're in a blockbuster or an art film, you have to be able to adapt.”

“I'm not as beautiful as a model.”

“In America, they are very respectful of your work. People are not judgmental. They like difference - to be different is a force. In France, you have to be like the girl next door.”

“My proudest moment is when I'm part of a good film, when people are touched by it.”

“Actually, I started to become an actress because I met someone who was just a friend and I found his life wonderful, I thought, Oh my god, you can travel, you're free, you can do what you want, you're the boss. And then I met an actor and I was in love with him.”

“I think that I'm shy and I judge myself. But at the same time, I also have big contradictions. I can be sometimes sure of myself as well. I'm not always fragile and vulnerable. I can feel tough and strong.”

“I like a man who can respect a woman. When he's real attentive, I think that is very manly. To respect a woman is divine.”

“I've always felt that Americans are very in the moment. There's not so much melancholia and mystery as there is in France. Everything must be understood. Everything must be analyzed.”

“It's a misogynistic world. It's because of what we ask of actresses. We ask them to be sensitive, fragile, desirable. And men? We ask them to be strong and virile.”

“I found it hard to express myself in the world. I was very shy. I'm still very shy. But also, when I was a child, I could get very... I had this violence... I still get angry. But I don't break things; I'm not hysterical.”

“I was putting forward too much of myself when I was singing.”

“I don't really wear makeup every day. I feel like being an actress - we wear a lot of makeup - but when I am not working, I need to let my face breathe and be very comfortable.”

“If I do too many takes, I'm too self-conscious. I think I'm better in first scenes.”

“In America, you don't have to be weak, you have to be strong.”