Wunmi Mosaku

Until 'Lovecraft Country' feels like a show where people go, 'Is that how the world used to be?' we do need to talk about it and make art about it, because sadly, it's not history yet.

There's an African proverb that I always quote as I think it's incredible which is, 'if the children are not initiated into the village, then they'll burn it down just to feel its warmth.'

I don't know what can be done about knife crime, gang culture and people carrying weapons because it's a world I don't know about, but I hope that people decide to disarm and walk away from conflict.

I think the saddest thing is how people take on guilt and blame that isn't theirs or doesn't belong to them, and how hard it is to forgive yourself.

I grew up on an estate in Manchester and people I've known from school have died in gang trouble and I always thought, if I'd been on a different estate at a different time, it could have been me.

The rage of someone who continues to strive so hard and work so hard but is interrupted every day by society, by racism, by white supremacy, by the patriarchy - how can you not feel empathy?

When you get to a place where a person is so angry that they can do anything - it's a dark dark place.

You get to a certain age and you start comparing and being uncomfortable in one's body. And then you get to a place where you start to love yourself, accept yourself, celebrate and honor yourself.

If we want the world to change, we can change it. But in order to change it, the world collectively has to do better.

I have truly never been honest outside of the home in regards to racism and inequality and what I've been subject to.

When I step out of my front door, I have to paint on a bright, big smile to make sure people treat me kindly rather than with suspicion, or assume that I'm going to be aggressive.

I was always treated older than I am when I was a kid, so I had to be like, 'No, I'm sweet,' and this has continued into adulthood because of the way society portrays Black women.

I Googled every actor from my favorite film 'Annie.' Albert Finney was also from Manchester and he went to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art - so I auditioned there, too.

My parents are professors. My sister is a Ph.D. student. My other sister has a business.

I come from a very matriarchal family and it's important to me that women are protected and saved and educated and loved and valued.

Gender inequality is a global issue that affects everyone.

I plant vegetables and every time I see a flower I'm like, 'I'm going to get a vegetable in a few weeks!'

Sci-fi and horror feel so relevant to me as a woman.

I've been woken up by things like the MeToo movement. I didn't realize how much of the patriarchy was ingrained within my spirit.

I'm an actor, after all, and I need to be able to pay my rent.

I read a script that's presented to me, and if I love the story and the role, I audition for the part, which is pretty much how I approach it.

I've been very much the kind of person who's very quiet about my own experiences.

Talking about racism with white people can make white people very uncomfortable, Black people very uncomfortable.

It is humbling to be a part of 'Our Loved Boy.'

I would always say I can sing, but I'm musical. I'm very good at following instructions, reading the music, and singing as it's written down, but there was a challenge when I had to improvise.

I think the thing I feel most comfortable in and the sexiest in is a headwrap and a t-shirt and jeans or a sweatshirt and jeans.

Truly, you always do your best in an audition. Even if it's terrible, you've done your best in the moment.

I go into every audition and I come out and I say, 'I did my best.'

I am the product of two very strong women, my mum and my grandma, who prioritized education.

My grandma was raised in Ghana, and she went back there to work, so she could earn money for my mum's education in Nigeria. It's where it all began, and that dedication to education is the only reason I'm here.

In Nigeria, my grandma sold everything - everything - for my mum's education.

I would die to get a part in 'Glee' and sing a song.

The beauty with U.K. productions is that, most of the time, you get all of the scripts when you audition for them.

Me and Hermione Norris are now best friends.

So, I was a fan of 'Luther' from the first reading of the script and watching the first series. I think the actors in it are just brilliant, and I had never seen a black lead in the U.K. for so many years. That was quite a shocking moment for me.

But there are times, as an actor, where you are like, 'Although I am really sad that I did not get this, I am really, really excited to watch it and just be a spectator.'

I've realized that I am very rarely honest. Outside of my family, I am very rarely honest when I step outside of the door.

I feel like I have a very typical west African physique, and that is part of my blackness!

I think, for me, just trying to be the 'non-threatening black woman,' constantly being, like, super-bubbly! And relatable! It takes a lot of energy! The energy you have to put into playing into the system of white supremacy, so that you can be just given a chance.

I've always been quite scared about talking about race. You don't wanna rock the boat because you want to keep working.

I feel middle-class, but my family had to start from scratch. There was no inheritance from a great-aunt. It feels like a slog.

I come from an educated family, but we were poor.

The scary thing is that I sometimes think, 'Oh, I've won a Bafta. This could be the top of the precipice.'

In my head, racism was an issue that needed to be fixed by the racists. Like you needed to convince that person one at a time rather than a systemic thing that needs a whole group effort.

I feel like I present the way I need to present in order to survive and feel like I can navigate.

I honestly never wanted to come to America. It wasn't part of my goal as an actor.

I censor myself all the time.

The taste of guava is my first memory. I remember somebody picking it from the tree and throwing it down to me.

I feel so British, but people would look at me and see a very African woman - the way I cook is very Nigerian, the way I dress I guess is quite Nigerian.

When I get nervous my energy gets really still, and I think people think that's me. Everything gets really still, and my voice gets a little bit lower and there is a little croak in there - sometimes you can hear it when I'm really nervous on camera.