A graduate of the Juilliard School, Viola Davis built an exceptional
background in theater productions and has continued to perform on the stage
throughout her television and film career. Making her feature-film debut in
1996 as a nurse in The Substance of Fire, she followed that up with several
TV movies and guest-star appearances on dramatic series like Law & Order and
NYPD Blue.
Viola Davis: "The Help" Interview
with Kam Williams
Kam Williams: Hi Viola, thanks for the interview. I've admired your
work for a long time, so I'm very honored to have this opportunity to speak
with you finally.
Viola Davis: Thank you, Kam.
KW: I have a lot of questions sent in by fans, so let me get right to them.
Legist/Editor Patricia Turnier asks: What message do you want people to take
away from The Help?
VD: That anything can be achieved with a good, healthy dose of courage.
These ordinary people who are just kind of just going about their lives are
transformed into heroes because they have the courage to put their voices
out there. I think that's a powerful message in this time of political
strife.
KW: Patricia also asks: Are there any unwritten rules which are part of the
movie industry?
VD: Yes, there are a lot of unwritten rules in the industry.
KW: Film director Kevin Williams says: Congratulations on another
great performance! How did you approach you're role and the material in such
a way that it manages to stand out from other Civil Rights era films?
VD: Well, I made a choice to humanize this woman beyond her uniform is what
I did. I made a choice to explore Aibileen fully: her joys, her grief at
losing her son, her journey in finding a purpose in life, because when you
meet her, she has basically died to herself after losing her child. So,
that's what I did. I created a human being. That's not what you usually see
in a maid. You see the woman cooking in the kitchen or taking care of a
child, and she comes up, says her one line, and then she goes back into the
kitchen. So, I made a choice to use my craft to create a character.
KW: Rene Harris says: I read an article in which you were quoted as
saying it is a painful certainty that you will never see a contemporary
black woman on screen as layered and complex as you. Do you expect someday
to be in a position to greenlight just such a story someday?
VD: Oh, absolutely! My husband [Julius Tennon] and I started a production
company. We've already optioned a book and some scripts to do exactly that,
to create more complicated, multi-faceted roles for African-Americans,
especially African-American females. I think it's important. Cicely Tyson
was my inspiration to become an actor. And one of the people I've always
wanted to emulate in pursuing that dream was Meryl Streep, in terms of the
different types of roles she's been able to play and the number of different
stories she's been able to tell. I know very few black actors who've been
given the opportunity to do that. I want to do what she does. I want to span
different genres. I want to be able to transform. I want to be able to be
sexy, and funny, and quirky, and all the other things that I am. And I feel
that the best way that I can achieve that is by producing. I am not a
writer, but I feel that when our production company is successful, we'll be
able to give some young writers with fresh voices an opportunity to put
their work out there.
KW: Rene was also wondering whether there are any books that present
complex women of African descent that you might consider getting the rights
to?
VD: Oh, there are 50 million of them! I already optioned a
book called
The Personal History of Rachel DuPree. I also like
The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill. And I love all of
Octavia Butler's books. She's created some very
complicated black heroines with a variety of belief systems. There are many
great books out there, but those are a few of the ones that stand out.
KW: Speaking of writers, children's book author
Irene Smalls says:
You are one of my favorites. I read an article saying that even though you
are dark-skinned you have succeeded as an actress in Hollywood. How do you
feel about a comment like that?
VD: I really appreciate that comment. I've always seen myself for who I am,
which is a lot of things. So, I guess that when I walk into a room, I bring
all those things to a role, and I've always just simply seen myself as an
actor. And I believe that it serves me well to just think in terms of my
craft. If hypothetically, I saw myself only as a sex symbol, or as some
other limited stereotype, I think I would feel like a complete failure. I've
been to acting school and I think that at the end of the day, when you just
focus on the work and you're comfortable with who you are, that at some
point someone's going to recognize your talent and give you an opportunity.
And after that, there's a domino effect. I've always believed that, and
never wanted to be anything other than who I am.
KW: Attorney Bernadette Beekman says: I love your work, and have
enjoyed seeing you on Broadway. I'd like to know whether the actresses
bonded along racial lines during the filming. I'm asking because I saw some
cast members on a TV talk show, and there seemed to be different reactions
to the cover photos of you on Essence and Vogue.
VD: The absolute truth is that the bond between all of the actresses on the
set was beyond compare. It was the most loving and most supportive
environment you can imagine. First of all, we had a great cast which was all
about the work. No egos. Secondly, I think we all understood that we needed
each other. We needed a relief from the world that we were creating. Each of
us was as uncomfortable as the next. In terms of the magazines, I'm not
exactly sure what Bernadette is referring to. I suppose that the covers are
open to interpretation, but I want to assure you that if you were in a room
with the cast, you would see absolutely no division.
KW: Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: How do you encourage someone to see
the film who might say, "I read the book and already discussed it in my book
group, so I don't think I need to see the movie. "
VD: First of all, film is a different medium. These characters actually come
to life in the movie, and you get to feel them in a completely different way
which is palpable. Plus, with a movie, you're able to share the experience
with an audience. And [director] Tate Taylor did a great adaptation of the
book. Because he's friends with [the book's author] Kathryn Stockett, he
felt a great responsibility to stay true to the story, so he fought hard for
everything that you see on the screen. Therefore, I'm urging people who
might have read the novel to see the movie for the unique experience the
film has to offer.
KW: My wife, Susan Doran, would like to hear your reaction to this
quote from the postscript to the book: "There's no trickier subject for a
writer from the South than that of affection between a black person and a
white one in the unequal world of segregation. For the dishonesty upon which
a society is founded makes every emotion suspect, makes it impossible to
know whether what flowed between two people was honest feeling or pity or
pragmatism."
VD: I think that is precisely what the movie is about. And I think that the
reason why the book has been so successful is their unlikely friendship,
because they're coming from two different worlds. They're coming from a
place where they cannot trust each other, because of what each represents in
terms of what the culture has dictated that we should believe about each
other. Then, all of a sudden, this idea of a book is put in the midst of all
of that mistrust, and the requirement of our having to work together to
finish the book literally forces us to have some sort of relationship with
each other. I think that's why it works.
KW: Susan would also like to hear your reaction to Kathryn
Stockett's recently saying she's proud of the South.
VD: I can't speak for the author, but I would guess that she feels proud of
the progress the South has made because, growing up, she experienced a very
different Mississippi than the one that exists today.
KW: Director/Professor Hisani Dubose says: I fell in love with your
acting abilities ever since I saw you in
Antwone Fisher. What type of roles
are you currently looking for?
VD: Complicated women who are filled with contradictions.
KW: Larry Greenberg says: You are one of the few actresses to enjoy
success in theater, film, and television. Do you view these as a continuum
or as three distinct forms?
VD: Probably as a continuum.
KW: Rudy Lewis asks: What was it like working opposite Denzel
Washington in the staging of August Wilson's Fences?.
VD: It was a wonderful, beautiful experience working with the consummate
professional.
KW: Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish
someone would?
VD: No, I think people ask me just about everything.
KW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is your earliest childhood
memory?
VD: Meeting my 9 year-old sister for the first time when she came to live
with us when I was 5.
KW: When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
VD: In one sentence? Gosh! I see a wise, confident yet insecure and
ultimately proud, African-American woman?
KW: The Tavis Smiley question: How do you want to be remembered?
VD: Oh my God! I would love to be remembered as a person who used her life
to inspire others in any way, shape or form.
KW: Thanks again for the time, Viola, and best of luck with all your
endeavors.
VD: Thank you very much, Kam
Related Links
Read a statement to the fans of The Help from the Association of Black Women Historians
Viola Davis The “Won’t Back Down” Interview
Viola Davis The “Beautiful Creatures” Interview (February 2013)