Watch ELLE’s 2019 Women in Hollywood Get Candid About Their Careers
This year's honorees—Zendaya, Nicole Kidman, Mindy Kaling, Natalie Portman, Lena Waithe, Melinda Matsoukas, Jodie Turner-Smith, Gwyneth Paltrow and Scarlett Johansson—open up about who excites them in the industry and what they won't accept any longer.
Lena Waithe on Breaking Barriers: "Am I happy to be opening up a door? Sure. But I also know that I'm in no way possible the first black woman to ever write an episode of television, particularly comedy, that's worthy of winning an Emmy. It's just not the case. There's still a lot of work to do."
Mindy Kaling on the Impact of Industry Diversity: "What is so nice about having people who look a little bit different than the traditional storytellers is when you start getting to see stories we haven't seen. Things like Queen & Slim or The Farewell, movies that I would not have seen even five years ago, are now commonplace, which is wonderful."
Natalie Portman on Changing Narratives in Storytelling: "We've been hearing one particular cross section of society's stories over and over again. And so there's a lot of room to grow, to have a different richness of experience in storytelling."
Melina Matsoukas on Sharing Her Own Experiences: "I mean there's no one else that can tell our story like us, making sure our narrative is shaped by us and not rewritten."
Gwyneth Paltrow on Remaining True to Herself: "Never accept dimming your light to make somebody else comfortable."
Zendaya on Forging Your Own Path: "Never accept what's given to you. The greatest and most creative people I think sometimes just had to like make their own opportunities."
Nicole Kidman on Female Collaboration: "It takes so much time to change things. But we have to keep working together to do so. As a woman working solo, I had far less power than when I work with other women and that's, you know, subsequently things like Big Little Lies, we were able to make happen because Reese and I were able to join our forces to get that made."
Scarlett Johansson on Positive Industry Changes: "With all these firsts that are happening for women in Hollywood, it feels like a huge win and it really shows you that if we allow people to reach their fullest creative potential, it's amazing what can be achieved."
Jodie Turner-Smith on Thriving in Hollywood: "You know, we've opened the door and now we've stuck our foot in it, they welcomed us, and we're overstaying."
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