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On modesty over historical accuracy in King Arthur (2004):
The Celts would've been fighting naked and painted blue, but there was no way I was going to do that. Having a bare midriff and running around killing people was fun. But you don't want to see boobs bumping up and down on a battlefield. It would be distracting
About kissing Orlando Bloom in Pirates of the Caribbean:
The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)) There were these teen-aged girls off-cam, and they were ready to kill me because I kissed Orlando Bloom!
About wearing a corset on Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003):
I had a Scarlett O'Hara thing, she gets her waist down to 18 and a half inches--so I thought I would try that. For five minutes, it's fantastic--you have this tiny waist and fantastic cleavage, but oxygen deprivation is a big problem!
Admitting she needs a break in 2007:
It's my instinct to think 'I have to say yes or there won't be another job.' But I've been working on films back to back for the past few years and I need a break. I think I just need to take time out to get a bit more of my own life back. If that means I have to go to the back of the queue as far as acting is concerned, then I just have to accept that.
After being called the new Hayley Mills:
That was cruel! Nothing against Hayley Mills, but I'm trying to be cool here. I'm trying to be edgy.
After donating her Oscar dress to the charity Oxfam:
This is such an amazing dress and I'm really pleased to donate it to Oxfam. I've seen the television reports on the horrendous drought in East Africa and know how desperate things have become, so I'm happy to be able to do something to help.
After her cleavage was digitally enhanced for a Chanel ad:
Those things certainly weren't mine. I was like, 'OK, fine. I honestly don't give a s**t.' I don't have any tits, so I can't show cleavage.
Asked what her indulgence is:
Spending time with my small circle of friends. I deal with fantasy most of the time, and I have to make time for reality. It's a real treat for me to talk to them on the phone, visit them, and have them visit me.
At a photo shoot:
I'm a hooker in these pictures, and I must be a high priced one because I'm staying at the Ritz, which is good.
Before singing in "The Edge of Love":
I went to voice coaching. I thought my legs were going to buckle and on the first couple of takes I sounded like a pubescent boy! I did go to a studio and record it beforehand so I thought when I got there I would just be miming and then on the morning when there was god knows how many extras and hundreds of crew members. I have never been more terrified in my entire life!
Describing her dream evening:
An Indian takeaway on the sofa - chicken Tikka Jalfrezi and Dhingri Mutter (peas and mushrooms) washed down with a bottle of Cobra beer.
Discounting rumours she has an eating disorder:
People said to me, ‘How does it feel to be called anorexic?’ I had no idea that I was. I’m not saying there aren’t people in the film industry that suffer from it [anorexia], but I’m quite sure I don’t have it.
Dispelling rumors of an eating disorder:
The rumours could potentially ruin my career because, if I had been ill, there is no way I would be able to do the action movies that I do - I wouldn't be hired.
On "The View" (1997):
I met Barbara Walters backstage and didn't know who she was. She's an American phenomenon, I was told later. I'm just sooo English.
On actresses living in Hollywood:
I take my hat off to actresses there, particularly the young ones, because the emphasis is on trying to find perfection. But I think it's the imperfections in people that make them perfect. I don't find perfect faces very interesting.
On Bend It Like Beckham (2002):
I thought there would be doubles--stunt doubles--and I would just run in for the close-ups, but unfortunately they didn't have the money for that.
On co-star Dominic Cooper's unflattering underwear for The Duchess:
We are all meant to be supportive of each other in these difficult and embarrassing scenes, but I took one look at him and just lost it ... I couldn't stop laughing because Dominic was trying to be dignified and aloof while looking completely ridiculous.
On doing her own stunts in Pirates of the Carribbean:
At the end of the two days it was time for me to jump off, and Gore (the director) said to me, 'you don't actually have to jump off, I can get a stunt girl to do that. But I told him: 'I've been standing up here terrified for two days, there is no way I'm not jumping off!' So I jumped off the plank, and I got a big pirate cheer at the end from all the guys, which was a very big compliment.
On her conception:
I was a bet. My mum was desperate for another child, and my dad told her that the only way they could afford to have one was if she sold a play. So Mum wrote When I Was a Girl, I Used to Scream and Shout.
On her costumes for "The Duchess":
I was literally sewn into these dresses. Because of that, and the hoops, I just couldn't fit into the loo at all; I just had to hang on all day.
On her decision not to star in the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie:
It was a completely fantastic experience, and it was an amazingly large portion of my life, but I don't think I need to go there again. I think that it's done.
On how she learned she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for "Atonement":
I was sitting in my living room actually nursing a hangover when my agent sent a text saying congratulations.
On kissing co-stars:
Johnny Depp certainly wasn't bad.
On making Love Actually (2003):
We had kind of done all our wedding and we felt like the stars of the show, then sudden you've got all these other people with story lines and you think: Excuse me, I know you're Alan Rickman, but get out of my film, please, thank you.
On shoes:
I see a pair of shoes I adore, and it doesn't matter if they have them in my size. I buy them anyway.
On the love scene with Clive Owen in 'King Arthur':
It was part of the job. There's no point in being embarrassed about it because that is the name of the game. It was just another day at the office. A very nice day at the office.
Revealing she plans on giving up acting:
The celebrity thing's completely crazy. I think I just have to move away or give it up altogether. I couldn't have kids in the situation I'm in now. But I could just do something else. That's probably what's going to happen. I made a decision very recently that I want a life instead.
Talking about her possibly being anorexic:
I've got a lot of experience with anorexia. It was in my family. My grandmother, and my great-grandmother suffered from it and I had a lot of friends at school who suffer from it so I don't think it's anything to be taken lightly.
On being asked if she would go out with Robbie Williams:
I don't know, I don't know him. He's very good looking though.
On her wardrobe:
I go for whatever is clean.
On turning her back on Hollywood blockbuster adventure films:
I can't imagine ever doing another one. I had five months off from Pirates during the summer last year, when I made Silk and Atonement, and it was so great - I want to be able to explore emotions in smaller projects. That's not to say I won't suddenly read a big Hollywood blockbuster and go 'oooh, that might be good...' But I haven't yet.
A newspaper here voted me one of the scruffiest people in Britain. I'm quite proud of that. It's completely true.
Acting requires me to be very observant, which means being able to sit in cafes for hours and watch people.
As a moviegoer and a woman, I want to see that, so it's great to get to play parts like that. But Guinevere is a terrifying creature. If I saw a battle, I'd run in the other direction. I'm not strong in that way at all. But I'm certainly someone who has always known what I wanted and tried to get it.
At parties, I stand on my own, grinning aimlessly. I can never think of a thing to say. I wish I was Sienna Miller. I watch that girl and she is just fabulous. She talks to everyone and laughs and smiles. She looks as if she is genuinely enjoying herself. When I talk to her, I hope a bit of her party personality will rub off on me but it never does. She could give master classes in being the most amazing party guest.
Do you know that on all the sets I've been on, nobody has ever made a pass at me?
Every part I've ever got, I always thought it was completely ridiculous that I was up for it. With Pirates, I only packed for a week because I was sure that I was going to get sacked. I thought they'd made the hugest mistake.
History was always my favorite subject anyway, and I love reading, kind of, biographies and that sort of stuff.
I absolutely hate red carpet events. I don’t like the fact that people write ‘Oh you look like crap’ [afterwards] or ‘I don’t like your arms’. I’m not Wonder Woman! I have self-esteem issues. Everybody does. You know, skinny people are allowed to feel **** about themselves [too].
I always feel like I'm the one with everything to prove.
I could never have an affair with any of my leading men, though. They always turn into brothers. I'm a classic turn-them-into-brothers kind of girl.
I did a film called The Hole when I was 16 and, when it came out, a couple of the popular girls at school said, quite loudly, 'She's in a crap movie, so it doesn't count.' It was rude and I was upset, but if you let that stuff bother you, you're going to be in for a tough time. I wasn't popular at school. I learned to let those comments wash over me. I toughened up quite quickly.
I do remember, at six, thinking I should be earning my own living. My mum says I was born 45.
I don't court attention, which is why I've never been to nightclubs like Chinawhite.
I don't do a thing to keep fit, I just cannot make myself work out. My abs are just luck - my mum has good ones so it's a family trait.
I don't have a problem with my body. I'm not just going to strip off all my clothing, but if the part calls for it and I don't think there's any way round, I'm absolutely fine.
I don't like parties very much. I'm not a very sociable being.
I don't read any magazines or newspapers any more, because I find it really scary and I get really scared when I'm followed by photographers. I have, on many occasions, broken down in tears because I find it terrifying. I dropped out of school when I was 16 so there's nothing else that I can do.
I don't read anything and I don't look at newspapers. It's too weird, so I'm not really aware of hype anywhere.
I don't shower enough. My scent is rather musky.
I don't think about nutrition. The very thought of a diet makes me want chips and ice cream. And I just hate going to the gym. I cannot stand it.
I don't think I can call myself an actress yet. I just don't think my skill level is that high. I hope that with every job it gets better. But until I'm good, I can say I'm trying to be an actor, but I don't think I've completely made it.
I feel less blonde now and, er, smarter! I actually feel much stronger, too.
I finished filming Pirates a couple of days before my 18th birthday, and made sure I was in London to celebrate it. There's no point having an 18th birthday in America, it doesn't mean anything as you can't go out and drink!
I got to kiss Orlando Bloom, get chased around a bit by Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush! It was very exciting.
I know for a fact the work is going to dry up, and people will get bored of me. That's not bitterness, just the truth.
I look at myself and I'm big. You can see proper muscles now. Ok, if they've put me on steroids and I haven't found out yet.
I never get chatted up. Honestly, I don't! And I'm so stupid that I wouldn't even realise if I was. I sometimes get a look but that's about it!
I paint and draw, but very badly.
I suppose I'm more of a tomboy than the girly-girl, which is why I can't walk on stilettos very well.
I think every girl is looking for her Mr. Darcy.
I think I always disappoint people, because they always expect someone very pretty. Very done. There's so much pressure to be thin, blonde and busty. I'm skinny, but even I couldn't fit into some of the clothes there (in L.A.)!" In a funny kind of way, I think you create it yourself. I think it's much better to go with the flow and embrace your body, whatever shape it is, and just be happy.
I think it's important to make time for the people in your life who you love and who love you back.
I tried college for three months but I was desperately unhappy. I just wanted to perform. I was getting straight As but I had no friends and cried every day.
I'd wanted to get stuck into the action on Pirates of the Caribbean and I asked Jerry [Jerry Bruckheimer] if I could have a sword fight in that, and he more than made up for it in King Arthur (2004) by giving me axe fights, knife fights, and all the rest of it. I absolutely loved it. It was like being 11 years old and in the playground again.
If I had a spot, in Bend it Like Beckham... a zit, you know a zit? You know a spot, a spot, a blemish, then I'd go and you know, you'd see it on screen. In Pirates of the Caribbean, they'd digitally remove it. Which is quite cool, I think every teenage girl needs that.
If I have a dark side, I haven't discovered it yet. How very boring of me.
I'm a bit of a tomboy so the action stuff was fantastic.
I'm doing a film now with a lot of guys as well, so at the end of that I will be growing a beard.
I'm dyslexic, and at six years old they realized I couldn't read a word and had been fooling them. My mum said to me: 'If you come to me with a book in your hand and a smile on your face every day through the summer holiday, I'll get you an agent.'
I'm incredibly self-conscious about my body.
I'm naturally an extremely lazy person, so if someone did everything for me, I really think I would do nothing at all.
I'm not a social person, so I really have very few friends in the business.
In LA, I'm twice the size- height and everything else- of most of the other actresses who are going for an audition.
In this business, fame lasts for a second. You can be blown up and be blown down. People keep losing interest in faces because new ones come along every single second. I'm one at the moment. Tomorrow I won't be. That's cool. I'm not saying that when it does end, I'll be like, 'Yay! It's ending.' But I'll move on and do something else because that's what has to be done. It's about survival. If you're sad about it, then you're in the wrong job.
It's all about perfection, isn't it?
It's also strange when people recognise you in the street and they know you but you don't know them. It's a little weird, but nothing to complain about.
It's not everyday you get to do a pirate movie, you might as well go for it.
It's scary because acting was always my salvation from school. So if anything had gone wrong at school, I could say, 'Oh, but I can do this.' But now it's the only thing. So you sort of think, 'Okay, but what happens if that goes wrong? What's the salvation?' That's a bit scary.
I've always been a snob about qualifications and it's the greatest irony that I left school before I could take my A-levels. I'll really feel bad when my friends get their results. And I'm going to regret not going to university. But acting has always been my dream and I have to pursue it while I can.
I've always been quite tomboyish.
I've got a kind, close-knit family group... They're all fab and they tell me when I'm acting up and laugh at me as much as possible, which is important.
Katharine Hepburn and Vivien Leigh are my heroes. Not because of their ability, but because of their perseverance.
Last year I went to the Vanity Fair party after the Oscars and I stood in the corner and had a lot of champagne. It's very, very scary.
On screen these days, you rarely see a big, strong man. You see slender, androgynous-looking boys. I've worked with very few people whom I feel small against. The most manly thing ever is a guy who can cry, who's in touch with himself.
People said to me yesterday, 'How does it feel to be anorexic?' I had no idea that I was. I can safely say that I'm not. I've got a lot of experience with anorexia. My grandmother and great-grandmother suffered from it. In a way it's good that it's out there and people are talking about it. It's quite interesting because it's normally high-achieving women who suffer from it because, I guess, they're control freaks.
People send over dresses for me to wear to these functions, but I often feel like a 5-year-old in my mom's clothes. So I just wear jeans and a top every single time.
Producers usually hire a stylist for me when I got to premieres because they think I'm so pathetic.
The fact that we haven't focused on the love triangle between Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere was actually one of the things that made me want to do the film. It's interesting to tell it in a completely new way.
The most exercise I do is turning on the television.
The most fantastic date I've ever had was going bowling, because I don't bowl and I'm awful.
The problem for me was that by being in the film the magic was broken. I loved the first Star Wars film and my mum was really into it too, that's why I took the part. But the Force wasn't there when we were filming it, and they didn't have real light sabers, which annoyed me.
There are pressures to conform to a certain type, tall, blonde, thin, big breasts, you know - The Type.
There's no individuality on the red carpet. That's why I loved Björk's Oscar swan dress. I wish I had the courage.
Three years after that I was diagnosed as dyslexic, and we struck a deal: I was allowed to start acting on condition that I would read constantly and get good grades at school.
To be honest, I'd sooner be with my mates having a pint.
We had an audition. I was in an office and women came in and started stripping. They had fantastic bums and it's at that point you go 'OK, unless your bum looks like that, don't show it on film.' I don't have a bum like that so it's not in the film.
We're all fans of cinema, you know. Forget about being an actor, I love watching films. I really do. That's what I love doing, as a hobby. I find the whole process fascinating, as do my parents, they go to the cinema a lot.
When I was about five, I think, I desperately wanted to be a pirate and have the hat and everything.
When in doubt, faint.
You go back to the sort of Errol Flynn movies, and the real swashbuckling kind of things, and yeah, I knew about them.
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