The people who are bullying you, they're insecure about who they are, and that's why they're bullying you. It never has to do with the person they're bullying. They desperately want to be loved and be accepted, and they go out of their way to make people feel unaccepted so that they're not alone.

What fame does is there is an illusion of familiarity that is cast into the world. So it's about negotiating with that illusion because, oftentimes, you encounter people who have encountered you, but you haven't encountered them. It's a little weird to find your footing.

I don't ever want to be president - let's just get that out of the way.

The first time I cut all my hair off was when I was 19. I just got fed up going to the salon every week. I'd had enough! On a whim, it was off. It's low-maintenance.

Personally, I don't ever want to depend on makeup to feel beautiful.

Makeup isn't something I've worn a lot of in my life.

Human beings have an instinct for freedom.

I had moved back to Kenya after undergrad, and I went through this crisis of, 'What is my life going to be about?'

My father was a professor of political science and also a young politician fighting for democracy in Kenya, and when things got ugly, he went into political exile in Mexico.

As human beings, what makes us able to empathize with people is a connection that is not necessarily understood mentally.

We, as human beings, have the capacity for extreme cruelty.

Being a part of '12 Years a Slave' has been one of the most profound experiences of my life.

I feel privileged that people are looking up to me, and perhaps a dream will be born because of my presence.

I'm interested in generating work for myself. I have trouble with this waiting-for-the-phone-to-ring lifestyle, especially after drama school, which was so creatively fulfilling.

My father used to act in high school. He was in a production of 'Othello;' I don't know who he played, but it wasn't Othello. He would talk about it, though, and read Shakespeare to me.

Every single laundromat, grocery store, everything is called 'Lupita' in Mexico.

I haven't always been gluten-free.

I would love to have a career that's governed by the material; I always want to be part of stories that I feel are worthwhile.

I never understood who all those people are behind the actors! When you see them on the red carpet on TV, you go, 'Why does that person need such a large entourage?' And then you realize that every single person there has a role to play.

Slavery is something that is all too often swept under the carpet.

I never, in my wildest dreams, could I have thought that the first role I get out of school would lead to an Oscar nomination.

I give myself homework when I have an audition. I give myself goals, and that's how I check how I'm doing. It can be something simple like 'listen,' or 'find your feet.' And then afterward it's an assessment, so in a way it's not about booking the job or not. It's about what I learned as an actor about that character.

I thought I was going to school to be other people, but really, what I learned was to be myself - accepting myself, my strengths and weaknesses.

I am thrilled beyond words that The Academy has recognized my performance in Steve McQueen's '12 Years a Slave,' and I am deeply proud to be in the company of my fellow nominees.