Viola Davis On Moments That Changed Her Life, Embracing Her Story and Staying Real: 'I Need to Be Me'

Dreaming big led to a legendary career for the EGOT winner, who is teaching her 13-year-old daughter about the power of having "a radical love affair with yourself"

Viola Davis is one of 19 EGOT winners in the world — meaning she’s won at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony (two Tonys in fact) — but stardom still took her by surprise. Her first PEOPLE cover, following her 2017 Oscar win for Fences, found Davis taking stock of her remarkable trajectory. “When you grow up in a certain set of circumstances, you no longer see yourself. And that's why you dream big, because it's almost like you're forcing yourself to just believe that something could happen,” says the actress, 52, who shares daughter Genesis, 13, with her producer husband Julius Tennon.

What strikes you looking back at your years in PEOPLE?
I see my life transpiring in front of me. I'm glad that I have these pictures to mark it. I remember when I got Solaris, I thought, "Oh my God, I've made it.’ [Or] Get Rich or Die Trying, doing that with 50 Cent and telling all of my people back home, "Guess what? I'm going to be in a movie with 50 Cent. I'm playing his grandma.” They said, "grandma?"

In one of your earliest PEOPLE interviews you shared that your Solaris costar George Clooney lent you his Lake Como villa as a honeymoon gift.
I'm not going to lie. Julius and I are still trying to manipulate getting back there.We were the only guests in the villa. We ate four or five course meals. And I remember at one point, Julius looking at me and his eyes were teary, my eyes were teary, and we just stared at each other for the longest time. And I remember Julius saying, "Can you believe his heart?"

Related: Viola Davis' Daughter Genesis Makes Rare Appearance as She Walks in Paris Fashion Show with Parents

How did the ABC series How to Get Away with Murder change your life?
I never imagined myself getting a lead role like Annalise Keating. And then I remember Suicide Squad because I was shooting it as I was doing How to Get Away With Murder that first year. And I thought to myself, "Oh my God, Viola, it really can happen to people like you." Because I already made up my mind that the industry put a stamp on me. I understand that people from the outside say, ‘You can't sell yourself short. You are beautiful, Viola. You're all those things.’ But as an actor sometimes, and a journeyman actor, by this point, I never knew that my career could transpire like this.

What are your memories of winning your Oscar?
It was like pulling a rabbit out of the hat. That Viola, you dreamed the biggest dream in your life and you made it happen.And my mom, who's in memory care now, what I remember with this dress - when I put it on, she cried. I remember her crying because I think she felt the same way that I felt. Little country girl from St. Matthews, South Carolina, that she birthed me and she birthed this.

Do you feel the pressure to be perfect in public?
No, I don't. I go to the supermarket a lot with just a wrap on my head, no makeup. One time I got in the car and I forgot to put shoes on. I had my household slippers on. And I got to the supermarket and I thought, "Should I go back home and put on shoes?" I walked in with my slippers. I need to be me.

Related: Viola Davis and Julius Tennon's Relationship Timeline

Your daughter is now a teenager. What lessons are you teaching her right now?
What I tell my daughter right now is, "Genesis, you are the love of your life. You have to start right now to have a radical love affair with yourself, to be in touch with your inner voice, what you like, what you don't like, what's crossing the boundaries, and you honor that. And through that, that is the seed where everything grows."

No one ever told me that. No one ever told me that I was the love of my life. I just counted myself out. If I have to be small in order to build up a relationship, I'll make myself small. If I have to sacrifice my needs for others — that's a big one for women, we are considered stronger when we sacrifice our needs. I said, "Genesis, no, do not do that. You are the love of your life, you and you alone."

In this next chapter of your life, what do you see for yourself?
Oh, man. I want to become the love of my life. I feel that how you find meaning is you have to completely embrace your story. The number one regret of the dying is that they lived a life that was defined by everyone else and not themselves. [I’m] trying to live my life on my terms — everything. And dare to do that, even if it looks messy on the outside. I want to belong to myself.

Credits

Photographer Art Streiber

Cinematographer Eric Longden

Set DesignAnthony A. Altomare/Buffalo Art Co.

Hair Jamika Wilson/Epiphany Artist Group, Inc

MakeupAutumn Moultrie/The Wall Group

Stylist Elizabeth Stewart/A-Frame Agency

Wardrobe Dress: Alexandre Vauthier, Shoes: Stuart Weitzman, Earrings: 8 Other Reasons

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