Halle Berry

Let me tell you something - being thought of as a beautiful woman has spared me nothing in life. No heartache, no trouble. Love has been difficult. Beauty is essentially meaningless and it is always transitory.

Sexiness is a state of mind - a comfortable state of being. It's about loving yourself in your most unlovable moments.

What's the worst that can happen? If it doesn't do well I can put on my big girl panties, deal with it and move on.

When an opportunity comes your way, it's about making sure you're prepared to be the one who can walk through the door and deliver the goods. And I've had a lot of luck on my side and I've been prepared for that luck.

If you're of multiple races, you have a different challenge, a unique challenge of embracing all of who you are but still finding a way to identify yourself and I think that's often hard for us to do.

This moment is so much bigger than me. It's for every nameless, faceless woman of colour that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened.

I've pretty much learned I can let that [being black] hinder me if I want to ... or I can fight for different kinds of roles.