Viola Joy relished pushing herself with L’Oreal Fashion Show

Viola Davis enjoyed getting out of her “comfort zone” and pushing herself with the L’Oreal Paris fashion show.

Viola Davis enjoyed getting out of her “comfort zone” with the L’Oreal Paris fashion show.

The 60-year-old actress is an ambassador for the cosmetics company and she loved being able to “push” herself by taking part in their annual catwalk extravaganza, Le Défilé, in Paris.

She told Marie Claire magazine: “I can’t believe I’m walking in a fashion show.

“It’s like, diametrically opposed sometimes to who I am, which is so great, to get out of your comfort zone. Every year, I just enjoy it so much. It’s like a quick jolt of energy. It’s getting out of my comfort zone. It’s pushing myself. It’s feeling pretty.”

The How to Get Away with Murder actress believed beauty comes with “authenticity” and she thinks all the characters she has played have been “beautiful”, but not because of their looks.

She said: “You know that saying, ‘beauty is as beauty does’? That’s how beauty plays a part in all the characters I play. The beauty of anyone is their authenticity.

“All the characters I’ve played have been immensely beautiful to me in their unapologetic sort of self-possession. That’s what it is. It’s self-possession.

“That’s how beauty plays a role in the characters, not necessarily in the lipstick.”

And the Fences star praised the “beautiful women” she is surrounded by.

She said: “I feel like I have so many beautiful women in my life. And what makes it beautiful is when you feel safe—when you come together, you create a sacred space where the masks are off and there is no judgment.

“At the end of the day, we need each other, right? All the women in my life are great broads. They’re unapologetic.”

Viola herself feels at her most beautiful when she is alone and can look “raggedy” without worrying about what other people think.

She said: “When I’m by myself. When I’m in my room and I can blast my music. I can laugh as loud as I want. I can look as raggedy as I want. I can look as beautiful as I want. I feel fabulous.

“I felt fabulous in my hotel room last night. I had a piece of Maison Chocolat, I read a book, I was laughing out loud. I was crying. I felt fabulous.”