22 Incredible Women In Their Own Words
As 2022 draws to a close, we look back on a year of PORTER and NET-A-PORTER interviews with Incredible Women, celebrating the important messages and powerful words they have shared with us
Simone Ashley on shows that shift the dial
“[The diversity] isn’t really commented on in either [Bridgerton or Sex Education], it’s just normalized, and I think that’s what makes them so great. The more these shows are being created, the more normal it’s becoming. I can certainly feel a temperature change.”
Emma Chamberlain on leaning in to vulnerability
“Everybody [online, when she was at high school] seemed like they had their shit together… I now know that that was part of the illusion, and that’s an art of its own. Nothing is wrong with that, but when there’s room for vulnerability, that’s what I want to do. I wanted to share what I didn’t have when I was growing up to look up to: a vulnerable, honest young woman.”
Simone Biles on using her platform to provide hope
“I’ll always continue to be a voice for the voiceless… Gymnastics can be a safe place.”
Maisie Williams on redefining beauty standards
“I was battling with wanting to look traditionally like what people picture as beautiful, and I was getting really lost in that… Then, I cut my hair into a mullet and said, ‘Well, I’m not going to even try anymore and I’m just gonna do something that I think really suits me – and is still very different to everything I’ve been doing but feels right.’”
Keke Palmer on embracing the two sides of herself
Self Esteem on overcoming shame
“Mass shame is a waste of time. I’m highlighting the things that I’m insecure about to save myself from the terror of it.”
Laverne Cox on letting go of guilt
“I’ve had to let go of the guilt that I have around being successful… a successful trans woman, when there are so many people in our – in my – community who are not doing well. Me walking around feeling guilty about my success is not useful. It’s just not useful.”
Zinnia Kumar on aiming to create accessibility in her industries
“I just really, really want to change the whole system for everyone else, so that everyone can get access and… feel like they can walk into a room and get what they deserve – without having all these barriers put on them.”
Jessica Chastain on choosing projects that champion inclusivity
“What am I putting out into the world? Am I creating something that might be meaningful to others or, in terms of The Eyes of Tammy Faye [the biopic about the TV evangelist who became known for her advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community, for which Chastain won this year’s Best Actress Oscar], help someone to feel they are accepted and loved for who they are?”
Rina Sawayama on using music to explore issues that are relevant to her identity
“To me, it’s a question of, ‘How do I want to represent myself and my community?’ It’s making sure that I’m honoring those stories and actually telling them in a really smart way, [so] that people singing it might not even know that that’s what [a song is] about… I don’t want to be a niche artist, I want to write huge songs. But I don’t want to lose what’s important to me.”
Jodie Comer on the women who have inspired her
Elle Fanning on gaining confidence to go behind the camera
“You know what? I’ve been working since I was two. I’ve started to come into my own a little more and have learned not to apologize for my age.”
Precious Lee on the freedom to be herself
“My individuality is one of my superpowers; I don’t want to look like everyone else. I make my own choices and I feel most inspired by designers who create from a space of freedom. I can appreciate classic looks, but I always give a twist; I won’t do predictable.”
Amanda Seyfried on looking back at the industry before the #MeToo movement
“Being 19, walking around without my underwear on – like, are you kidding me? How did I let that happen? Oh, I know why: I was 19 and I didn’t want to upset anybody, and I wanted to keep my job. That’s why.”
Little Simz on the drive to never slow down
“It’s not about saying yes to every opportunity but understanding the opportunities that are gonna help move the needle… Next year, someone else is going to headline Glastonbury, someone else will be shortlisted for a Mercury, someone else is going to get Best New Artist. As much as it’s wicked now, and I’m very grateful, it doesn’t last forever. It makes me more hungry… I know I’ve got to keep my foot on the gas.”
Maude Apatow on finding her creative voice
“I’m always hard on myself. Sometimes I get in my head and think, ‘Why would anyone want to hear what I have to say?’ I try to clear my head of any of those thoughts. You can’t constantly judge yourself: it’s such a creativity killer.”
Emily Blunt on how female roles should be written
“Write me like a guy and I’ll do the ‘girl’ stuff. Just write me as you would a man: fallible and complex and difficult and shady… We are still having to remind people to not hold women to a certain ideal.”
Susie Lau on the memory-making power of fashion
“I think, sometimes, going into your wardrobe is like looking at a photo album, because it’s like the memories you have of something and, you know, it’s those things that make you happy – or sometimes, there are things you look at, thinking, ‘Oh God, I remember what happened when I wore that.’”
Arlo Parks on playing the waiting game
Katy Hessel on rewriting art history to include women
Michelle Lee on creating a sense of belonging
“I think one of the things we were really successful with at Allure was celebrating communities and people who had been underrepresented. And so, it’s a big component of what I’m doing at Netflix, too, just to create a sense of belonging for everyone. As an Asian-American woman, I think representation for me on so many different levels is incredibly important. So whether I’m at Allure or Netflix, I think that my passion for championing diverse voices has been truly the same.”
Yalda Hakim on the magnitude of storytelling
“Sometimes people say, ‘You know, my job doesn’t define me.’ But I think storytelling has become so much part of who I am, and this has become so much part of what I do. I live and breathe it in many ways.”