Sanaa Lathan

“My dad is a director/producer and my mom is a dancer; she performed with Alvin Ailey, but I didn't even think about becoming an actress.”

“I've never gotten any complaints about my headscarf from a man. You can be sexy with a head wrap!”

“I had never picked up a basketball before. I went through a grueling audition process. It was almost as if I was learning to walk. It would be like teaching somebody to dance ballet for a role.”

“Sometimes when you don't care, people are attracted to that.”

“The Alien is gross, scary. There is something in a human being that looks at them and sees it as a cockroach. You can never feel nurturing towards the cockroach.”

“Good storytelling appeals to me - good writing.”

“If you're in love and there's that chemistry, that's what it's all about.”

“I look forward to going to work. Everybody is at the top of their game. It was like we just got to play.”

“People may know me from films, but theater is my first love. I did about 35 plays before I even landed my first screen role. I'm very comfortable on stage, and theater is not something you can just wing.”

“If someone has already done a role I'm about to do, I won't watch the original until after I'm finished playing the role.”

“Kelsey Grammer is one of the best actors I've ever worked with.”

“I think I'm a character actress in a leading lady's body, but the industry doesn't really see me that way.”

“Being strong can be also feminine. I don't think feminine equals being weak. Being strong is very sexy.”

“You would never expect a black woman to be the hero.”

“In terms of facial creams or lotions, I try to switch it up and stay as natural as possible. l like Le Mer facial cream for when I have an event. It's very rich and sometimes too rich for some people, but I like it.”

“There is a lot of struggle in being an actor; you need so much emotional strength, no matter what level of stardom you have, that it's nice to have something steady.”

“I have dated all races, and I believe you should be free to do whatever you want.”

“I really prefer the actual experience of being onstage and living the character from beginning to end with the energy of the audience. There's nothing that beats that feeling, and yet I really have trouble with the eight shows a week.”

“I come from the theater, and I've done a lot of character work in the theater, but Hollywood stuff in film and TV, they've been more leading lady/ingenue type roles.”

“I didn't get to see Predator until halfway through shooting. It was great to get an education while I was shooting because it made me excited to be part of this legacy.”