:00:00. > :00:00.Now BBC News, the latest in our series of interviews with
:00:00. > :00:00.influential women. Talking to Hilary Swank.
:00:07. > :00:15.Welcome to this special 100 women interview. Hilary Swank is a two
:00:16. > :00:17.time Oscar-winning actress who has taken on some of Hollywood's
:00:18. > :00:23.wittiest roles. She comes from humble beginnings, she travelled in
:00:24. > :00:28.a trailer park and lived out of a car until she got her a break. Now
:00:29. > :00:32.she is as much as an advocate as she is an actress, campaigning for
:00:33. > :00:37.transgender rights and working with military families. On this special,
:00:38. > :00:40.I will be talking to Hilary Swank about her rise to the top and what
:00:41. > :00:58.it is like to be a woman in Hollywood.
:00:59. > :01:06.Hilary Swank, thank you for joining us on the BBC. It is an honour,
:01:07. > :01:11.thanks for having me. I do not know what I did in this life to deserve
:01:12. > :01:16.all of this, I am just a girl from a trailer park. That is part of your
:01:17. > :01:23.speech when you access to the Oscar for $1 million baby. Tell about your
:01:24. > :01:30.early days. Like you said, I grew up from humble beginnings. I did not
:01:31. > :01:40.recognise that was something people looked down upon, the trailer park
:01:41. > :01:49.world. I had food and yet I was treated a certain way and I remember
:01:50. > :01:57.classes. I felt more like an outsider than I ever had before. I
:01:58. > :02:05.read characters in books and movies like elephant man or the wizard of
:02:06. > :02:08.Oz, and those books make me feel like I had someone I could relate
:02:09. > :02:15.to, somebody experiencing life in a way I understood. That is what
:02:16. > :02:19.propelled me. One of the things that maybe want to be an actor was to
:02:20. > :02:23.learn things about people in different areas of life and how we
:02:24. > :02:28.are connected and how we are different, to find more meaning
:02:29. > :02:35.through those stories. What is the biggest lesson you wrote about
:02:36. > :02:38.classes as a child? At a time I did not understand it. I did not know
:02:39. > :02:45.why it I could stay at my friend's house. Did people effectively
:02:46. > :02:52.discriminate against you? Absolutely. I was playing on the
:02:53. > :03:00.other side of the track. Their parents would say, no, you need to
:03:01. > :03:08.go home. I did not understand, I did not know what was happening. I told
:03:09. > :03:13.my mum what was happening and why did I have to go home and why would
:03:14. > :03:19.they play with me and she did her best at answering, saying everybody
:03:20. > :03:27.has a point of view and it is our job to keep living your life. That
:03:28. > :03:35.is a big part of what made me who I am today. At the time even though it
:03:36. > :03:38.was hard, I am grateful for it. You mentioned your mother, she has been
:03:39. > :03:46.a huge inspiration, you have said that before. Tell us about your mum?
:03:47. > :03:51.My mum gave up her dream at such a young age, to be a dancer, that is
:03:52. > :03:57.right. She was an incredible dancer, but she was also an athlete and she
:03:58. > :04:01.took part in community sports. Which, by the way, made a
:04:02. > :04:08.significant impact on me. It did teach girls how to have a healthy
:04:09. > :04:17.relationship, to work together, how to support each other's strengths,
:04:18. > :04:22.how to encourage others. It meet the belief in myself and it made me want
:04:23. > :04:35.to work harder and want to persevere. At 40, 41, I can
:04:36. > :04:38.recognise that is probably the biggest gift I will ever be given.
:04:39. > :04:45.At the time I do not know if I recognised it. Hindsight is 2020. It
:04:46. > :04:50.is at the age of 20 that your parents split up. A little bit
:04:51. > :04:59.before that. How did that affect you? I understood in a profound way
:05:00. > :05:04.that that was for the best. A lot of kids get something from that, but I
:05:05. > :05:15.think I understood that both of them would be better going their separate
:05:16. > :05:20.ways. Everybody deserves happiness. After you have tried hard to make
:05:21. > :05:27.something work, let us find that so everyone can be happy. So then your
:05:28. > :05:36.mum and you got in a car with $75 and drove to Los Angeles? How long
:05:37. > :05:44.does that take? 19 hours. What was going through your mind? I was on
:05:45. > :05:48.cloud nine. I was so excited. My mother had to make a decision about
:05:49. > :05:54.what she wanted. She said, we are going to do this, we are going to
:05:55. > :06:06.move to Los Angeles. I said, that is great. We had $75 to our name. I was
:06:07. > :06:13.embarking on the biggest dream. My mum literally stood at payphones
:06:14. > :06:22.with quarters, calling agents, saying you should see my daughter. I
:06:23. > :06:30.have such an insurmountable amount of gratitude for her. At the time,
:06:31. > :06:35.it is so easy to take for granted. Now I am leaving my dream and I
:06:36. > :06:42.continue to be living my dream. I am just eternally grateful. When she
:06:43. > :06:46.said, let us get in the car, we are moving to Hollywood, how confident
:06:47. > :06:50.that you feel about the whole thing? It is not something that most people
:06:51. > :06:58.who drive to the city with $75, they do not end up winning two Oscars. I
:06:59. > :07:04.do not think I thought... I have never been one to live in a fearful
:07:05. > :07:10.mind. I thought it was a great adventure. I am an adventurous
:07:11. > :07:20.person and I like to challenge myself. I had my mum, who had my
:07:21. > :07:26.back. With that, she gave me, allowed me to spread my wings and
:07:27. > :07:38.fly. She took a lot of that pressure off of me. Then she got a job and I
:07:39. > :07:46.started doing odds and ends. We rented from a single mother and
:07:47. > :07:49.lived for a year with them. As we continued, she continued to work and
:07:50. > :07:56.I continue to get more jobs, we rented a house. I turned 18, which
:07:57. > :08:05.was my big break. I moved to Boston to film. Los Angeles is a city where
:08:06. > :08:11.so many people come and not everyone makes that dream. You live here now.
:08:12. > :08:17.When you look around, you meet the waiter who wants to be an actor. How
:08:18. > :08:21.does it feel? Absolutely, I was travelling and they came through
:08:22. > :08:33.customs. Customs officer said, I am an actor and you remind me to follow
:08:34. > :08:39.my dreams. Some help I am some type of, the catalyst to inspire him to
:08:40. > :08:46.never give up. It is always shocking to me. But it is a great honour to
:08:47. > :08:51.be in that position and it is just a reminder to be of hellfire we have
:08:52. > :08:59.come and how lucky I am. -- like hell fire. But as talk about some of
:09:00. > :09:11.your acting roles. You started out in 'Beverly Hills, 90210'. The part
:09:12. > :09:20.was written out quite quickly. After the 11th episode I was fired. It is
:09:21. > :09:26.a big blow. Especially when our, I started my career in comedy. I was
:09:27. > :09:37.trying to do drama and then I get fired. It was not really a
:09:38. > :09:44.was, it was even more devastating. I just thought, I am not good enough
:09:45. > :09:49.for 9210. It is such an important reminder
:09:50. > :09:57.reason. You have to try and look for the bright side of things. I would
:09:58. > :10:05.never have been able to do that movie. Let us talk about boys don't
:10:06. > :10:13.cry, your breakthrough film. You played a very interesting character,
:10:14. > :10:17.a 2-storey. Who was born in the same hospital I was born in. She was .2
:10:18. > :10:26.years performing. That is unbelievable. Were you aware of
:10:27. > :10:37.this? I was not aware of this. I did not know at the time.
:10:38. > :10:43.catalyst for raising awareness of the very important issues
:10:44. > :10:44.surrounding gay, lesbian, transgendered, questioning,
:10:45. > :11:00.bisexual. -- transgendered. People come to me and say that movie was
:11:01. > :11:27.the, it was, movie that transcends gender in a
:11:28. > :11:32.lot of ways. It is about love and it is a reminder that nobody can tell
:11:33. > :11:35.you who to love. That is our birthright. It is interesting to
:11:36. > :11:44.have people who had negative thoughts about gay and lesbians and
:11:45. > :11:49.said, you are straight and you look at the story in a different way,
:11:50. > :11:56.just to think of the importance of that, I have no idea. Because it was
:11:57. > :12:02.such a powerful role, how do you prepare for that? You have talked
:12:03. > :12:09.about physical preparation, but also the emotional preparation. The
:12:10. > :12:14.hardest thing is understanding that this is happening to people, that it
:12:15. > :12:20.was a true story. When you are in the middle of doing that, it is such
:12:21. > :12:24.an challenging and difficult story and going through scenes that are
:12:25. > :12:29.harrowing, you cannot say, this did not happen, it is just a story, it
:12:30. > :12:38.is just fiction, it happened. It does happen. You need to almost, it
:12:39. > :12:43.is impossible to, it makes you have to do something about it. You have
:12:44. > :12:53.to stand up, you have to help. After that movie, I became the
:12:54. > :13:02.spokesperson for an institute for ten years. How rewarding was that
:13:03. > :13:10.experience? It is an honour to be a voice for those youth. While I was
:13:11. > :13:16.in that space, I helped them open and accredited high school. There
:13:17. > :13:26.was a lot of debate surrounding it. Being a voice for them was really,
:13:27. > :13:33.like I said, how I took the feelings that came up from me in doing that
:13:34. > :13:40.movie and wanting to take a stand. Let us move to the other role that
:13:41. > :13:42.when you an Oscar, the thing -- female boxer in million dollar baby.
:13:43. > :13:51.How do you prepare for that? That not being with a true story yet
:13:52. > :13:57.it was with the esteemed Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman. I just
:13:58. > :14:03.thought these two in another league from me. I thought, how do I step up
:14:04. > :14:12.to the plate and play with them? I thought, I have to be as believable
:14:13. > :14:15.as possible as an boxer. So, I trained five hours a day, six days a
:14:16. > :14:21.week for three months before we filmed. Great trainers and teachers
:14:22. > :14:28.and people that helped me tremendously. Doing something that
:14:29. > :14:34.pushes yourself to your limit makes you recognise your biggest obstacle
:14:35. > :14:41.is yourself. We get in the way of ourselves all the time. The second
:14:42. > :14:44.that I found myself stumped, I recognised it was my mind saying I
:14:45. > :14:53.couldn't do it. Can you still do a right hook? I remember, thinking in
:14:54. > :14:58.the beginning, three-minute round? It was the hardest thing I have ever
:14:59. > :15:04.done. The important thing is how to gauge your opponent. It is a real
:15:05. > :15:07.chest match. There were reports you almost died from a potentially fatal
:15:08. > :15:14.blood poisoning through the training. Is it true? It is true. I
:15:15. > :15:21.had staph on my foot because I had a blister the size of my palm on the
:15:22. > :15:30.bottom of my foot from pivoting and I took it on myself to pop it
:15:31. > :15:34.because I couldn't train with it and got an infection. I had no idea that
:15:35. > :15:40.it was staph. I was in a lot of pain. That was near death. How did
:15:41. > :15:43.you recover? The thing is, when you get staph you can see the line going
:15:44. > :15:48.up your body because it goes to your heart. If it goes to your heart it
:15:49. > :15:53.is fatal. It was on my foot and it reached the low by knee. You were
:15:54. > :15:59.OK. I went to the doctors, the hospital, and got treated.
:16:00. > :16:04.Interesting about that role, it is a woman trying to make it in a man's
:16:05. > :16:08.world. I wanted to ask what you think about the debate in Hollywood
:16:09. > :16:12.about the amount that women earn compared with your male
:16:13. > :16:15.counterparts. Do you feel you have been paid significantly less than
:16:16. > :16:26.male co-stars? Absolutely, hands down. Sometimes, you know, it is
:16:27. > :16:30.greatly shocking when you hear, you know, here is the role, they have
:16:31. > :16:35.cast the guy and here is the offer, and you ask, really? They say, there
:16:36. > :16:39.is nothing more. And you know what they are paid and they got the money
:16:40. > :16:43.first. Usually they cast men first. Then they go to see how much they
:16:44. > :16:52.have for the female. And it is astonishing. How do you fix it?
:16:53. > :16:56.Again, continuing to talk about it. People talk about it more and more.
:16:57. > :17:00.That will always make change, hopefully. It will be a fight. I
:17:01. > :17:08.think we can persevere. What role would you like to play next? I would
:17:09. > :17:15.like to do an action movie. Really? Yeah. I grew up an athlete, as we
:17:16. > :17:20.talked about. I love being physical. I love action films. I think it
:17:21. > :17:26.would be really fun to do a female Bourne or something. What about the
:17:27. > :17:31.Bond girl? We were talking about that earlier today. I said, isn't it
:17:32. > :17:36.strange there was a rumour and no one approached me about it. I think
:17:37. > :17:39.it would be super fund. The Bond is what we were talking about before,
:17:40. > :17:46.the powerful man and psychic woman -- fun. She is a fun psychic woman.
:17:47. > :17:54.No? Does she have a powerful role. She is subservient to the man. Maybe
:17:55. > :17:57.we can make her a kick but Bond girl who can walk shoulder to shoulder
:17:58. > :18:01.with Bond. What do you think? Definitely. Film critic Roger Ebert
:18:02. > :18:06.said you are in actors who doesn't fit many roles but when she is right
:18:07. > :18:15.she is right. What would you say to it? Is it a blessing or a curse?
:18:16. > :18:21.Unfortunately, I think now that he has passed, and it is a great loss,
:18:22. > :18:26.I have enormous respect for him, but he won't be able to see all of the
:18:27. > :18:30.choices I make in future. Like Bond girl? I wonder what he would say
:18:31. > :18:35.choices I make in future. Like Bond girl? I wonder what he would about
:18:36. > :18:41.that. Moving on to charity work. Tell me about your own charity. I
:18:42. > :18:47.started that charity this year. That is my name and my late dog's name
:18:48. > :18:51.put together. The idea is to put children given up on an animals
:18:52. > :18:56.abandoned together to help heal each other through rescue rehabilitation
:18:57. > :19:01.training. To see these kids come in who have been completely given up
:19:02. > :19:07.on, by choice or circumstance, they see these dogs who have, who are in
:19:08. > :19:11.the same position as them. They have been kicked to the curb like kids
:19:12. > :19:17.feel they have been. They have an instant bond and connection. I feel
:19:18. > :19:24.like these dogs really see them and they see the dogs. It is a really
:19:25. > :19:27.cathartic and healing experience. You have worked on other causes like
:19:28. > :19:34.helping military families. Absolutely. My dad was in the
:19:35. > :19:38.military. They are really the unsung heroes. They leave their families,
:19:39. > :19:46.they have to leave their families for a long time. They fight for all
:19:47. > :19:53.of us, for all of the world globally. These kids are kind of
:19:54. > :19:59.left behind. And the single parent as well. Since you mentioned your
:20:00. > :20:04.data. You have taken time off to help care for him -- dad. He was
:20:05. > :20:10.suffering from some kind of lung disease? Yes. He was given the
:20:11. > :20:18.diagnosis of three years to live if he didn't get a lung transplant. He
:20:19. > :20:22.was very lucky. He got a lung in six weeks. He just waited six weeks. It
:20:23. > :20:28.takes an entire year to see if the organ will actually take. It has
:20:29. > :20:34.been really touch and go and it has been a difficult journey for my dad.
:20:35. > :20:40.He is OK? He is. Three weeks ago he rounded a corner for the better. I
:20:41. > :20:44.am so grateful to the doctors. It has been a blessing to be in a
:20:45. > :20:49.position to be able to help him in his journey and in his recovery.
:20:50. > :20:54.Taking a year off for some might seem as career suicide. You know
:20:55. > :20:58.what, for me there is no question that I would take error of my dad
:20:59. > :21:06.and that I would help him. It was a no-brainer. I never once thought,
:21:07. > :21:14.and I going to work again? Maybe that is naive. I just thought, that
:21:15. > :21:19.is what family does for one another. That is what you do for someone in
:21:20. > :21:24.that position. Like I said, I feel blessed that I could do that. People
:21:25. > :21:27.might not be in that position to do that, in a great time of need. And
:21:28. > :21:37.my parents would do exactly the same for me. And so anyway, I am starting
:21:38. > :21:41.to look again. It has actually been, you know, to step out of
:21:42. > :21:47.something you love so much gives you even more appreciation for it. It is
:21:48. > :21:51.the old adage, if you walk away, and you miss it and long for it. I think
:21:52. > :21:58.I will step back into it with a whole new passion and respect. As
:21:59. > :22:00.part of the 100 Women series, we are asking interviewees to nominate a
:22:01. > :22:07.woman who has inspired them. Who would you nominate? I would like to
:22:08. > :22:13.nominate Erin Grewal. She is an extraordinary woman who I have the
:22:14. > :22:22.honour of playing in the film Freedom Writers -- Gruwell. Talk
:22:23. > :22:27.about instilling belief in hundreds of thousands at risk youth. Kids who
:22:28. > :22:32.would never have believed in themselves without her believing in
:22:33. > :22:38.them first. I feel like teachers, talk about unsung heroes. They get
:22:39. > :22:41.paid the least amount and they have the most important job. A teacher
:22:42. > :22:48.can literally affect your life for the good or for the bad. You know,
:22:49. > :22:54.of course education is important, but the idea that a teacher can make
:22:55. > :23:02.you see and think bigger and inspire you to be greater self, and Erin
:23:03. > :23:08.took these kids, most of them were gang members who had been shot at or
:23:09. > :23:15.try to shoot at somebody. None of them had any desire, let alone they
:23:16. > :23:18.-- thought that they would graduate high school. A lot of them were the
:23:19. > :23:21.first in their family to graduate high school. They went on to
:23:22. > :23:24.college. They are now working with her and the foundation. They need
:23:25. > :23:32.someone who believed in them who said that they are worth it. That
:23:33. > :23:36.they are worth it. To me, she has inspired me with my foundation. The
:23:37. > :23:43.idea to give kids hope who don't have any. It is I think one of the
:23:44. > :23:47.most important things we can do. That was an inspirational way to end
:23:48. > :24:13.this interview. Thank you very much for being one of our 100 Women
:24:14. > :24:17.A fairly chilly weekend coming up, with blustery winds.