Paula Patton heats up the December/ January issue of Complex Magazine…The actress stars in the upcoming Mission Impossible:Ghost Protocol, with Tom Cruise, due out at the beginning of the year..See the pictures and interview excerpts of the actress below, after the jump.
There’s a scene in the movie where you come to blows with another actress. Did you have any real-life fighting experience?
Not at all. I’d never physically hit anybody until I was doing the rehearsal. They had a stunt man, and we were getting ready, and the timing got screwed up and I really connected with this guy’s chin. And, I have to say, it was gnarly! [Laughs.] But, also, I’ve never felt worse. It’s a whole other thing to hit skin. It didn’t feel good at all, and yet it was like, “Wow, that worked! I can really hurt someone.” It just goes to show you that the smallest person can inflict the most damage if they know what they’re doing, and it’s good for women to know that.
But it’s always good to know that you’re capable of knocking someone out.
Definitely. Listen, I’m not someone to be played with! [Laughs.] If need be, I can hurt someone. I don’t think there’s a problem with that. I just try not to be like, “Oh, I really want to sock this person in the face.” That’s not saying that I’m perfect. Ideally, I want to be a person who tries to have some compassion. But I have said things, like, “I’m going to strangle this person,” or, “I want to murder them!” [Laughs.] Which is horrible. I’m such a…. What’s the word for it? I waver back and forth; I’m many things at once.
Hollywood is definitely lacking in female action heroes. Is that something you’d be game for?
Hell yeah. I’d love to do more action films. I was always athletic as a child, so for me it’s fun to run and jump and get physical. I love all of that. It would be amazing to keep kicking ass in other films, or in more Mission: Impossible films—whatever comes my way. I’m just open to wherever life takes me. I try to put up light guardrails in my life, and leave room for things to come my way and surprise me. If you’re too rigid in your quest for something, you might not see the other amazing possibilities that are thrown at you.
What brought about your newfound sense of confidence?
Being honest with yourself as you get older, and after you live life longer. I’m more comfortable with my flaws now, and with that, you start to feel more confident. When you’re trying to hide all of your flaws, and you’re embarrassed by them, it can be so uncomfortable—very, very uncomfortable. You don’t know who you’re supposed to be. I just hit a certain point when I started to think, “You know what? These are my flaws, and I’m OK with them.” I love me! I’m doing the best I can with what I have. I’m not afraid to say that anymore. I feel comfortable in my own skin now.
How big of a factor is your husband in this new confidence?
He is my greatest supporter. He’s never stopped me from doing a single thing; he only encourages me to go for it. He tells me to do things before I even think I’m ready myself. ~ Complex
