Taraji P. Henson covers
Upscale magazines April Issue. Inside the popular actress dishes on her
Oscar nomination and why she decided to work
with Tyler Perry, love and dating plus the realities of being a black actress. Get the details after the jump.
On what happened after her Oscar nomination and Tyler Perry:
“People were like, ‘you just get nominated for an Oscar and the first
movie you do is a Tyler Perry film?’ Well, it’s not like Scorsese called
me! Tyler was the only call i got the day after the Oscars. And he gave
me a quote. Up until then, I had no quote. I was getting paid pennies
to do movies. Tyler treated me like a queen.”
On staying grounded/friendships: “I’ve got my road
dogs who were with me before all other fame. My best friend in the whole
wide world I’ve known since the seventh grade. My other girlfriend was
my roommate at Howard. They are my backbone. They know me. When they see
me, they look behind the eyes into my soul to see if I’m really
alright.”
On the realities of being a black actresses: “It’s
always a battle for black women; we’re totally at the bottom of the
totem pole. Look at the white girls. How many times have you seen Amy
Adams in a period piece with a great actor like Meryl Streep or
Christian Bale? And look at Jennifer Lawrence! Hits out the wazoo! How
come we’re not nominated every year? Because the scripts and the roles
aren’t there. It’s not rocket science.”
On love and dating: “Here’s the deal. I’m no spring
chicken. I’m not in my 20s dating around. I’m looking for happily ever
after. So, once you get clear on what it is you’re looking for, the
pickings are slim, honey. I’ve left the whole continent of North
America. I’m looking abroad.”
