Olivia Munn was inspired to act by '80s sitcom character Punky Brewster.
The Newsroom star was a geeky-looking child who didn't have many friends while she was growing up.
She found comfort in the fact she looked like actress Soleil Moon Frye, who played Punky in the show.
"Oh my gosh, there's a girl with dark hair and freckles, and she wears boys' clothes... That's exactly how I was as a kid," Olivia recalled to Bello about the series. "And I never saw anyone who looked even remotely like that on TV. I was a lone wolf."
Olivia was just five years old when she told her mom she wanted to befriend Punky.
Her mother then informed her she wasn't real, and that the girl playing her was an actress.
"I then told my mom that's what I wanted to do. Act," she explained.
As well as her role in TV series The Newsroom, Olivia has gone on to appear in a string of Hollywood films such as Magic Mike. The star recently got the chance to meet her childhood idol Soleil at an event, but was too nervous to email her.
"There's no way I deserve to be Punky Brewster's friend!" she exclaimed. "I honestly don't know if I could be normal around her."
Olivia feels scared by the thought that she has now established herself as an actress. She thanks her mother for instilling a work ethic in her that makes her continuously challenge and push herself.
"That only brings on the fear of complacency for me. You can only be best in the moment you're in right now. There's still this hustle you've got to get your head down and work hard. And sometimes you have to play the game, because everything in life is a game," she finished.
"You have to learn how to deal with the politics of any profession. Then, after you work hard, when you can, you can change the game."
Cover Showbiz
source: newshub archive
