Lucy Liu still has a "belief in the magic of filmmaking"

She told The Hollywood Reporter: "It's better to come from a place of excitement. And honestly, gratitude - just because there's so much broken in the system, it doesn't have to change your belief in the magic of filmmaking. To me, it was a form of escape and a form of understanding.

"That momentum that I had as a 19- or 20-year-old when I started, not knowing everything else was a beautiful thing. That's the combustion of a starting out, the accelerator is really the beauty of it. You don't want it to be tainted too soon."

Lucy starred alongside Cameron Diaz and Drew Barrymore in 2000's Charlie's Angels film. But while her co-stars decided to pursue other interests for periods of time, Lucy has always remained committed to the film business.

She explained: "I'll never lose that magic. I never retired. I never strayed from this business because I love it so much.

"People talk about how people go in a different direction, and I think that that's fine. I don't ever judge people for that.

"You were talking about Charlie's: Cameron retired for a while, and her ability to light up a room is like nobody else's. Drew has gone down this new path to connect with people - she's always been a people person, and now she has a talk show that's incredibly successful. But I've just stayed on this path. This is the path that I choose."

Meanwhile, Lucy previously revealed that Dame Helen Mirren gave her the best advice she's ever received.

The actress heaped praise on the Oscar-winning star, describing Helen as a "wonderful, magical person".

Asked to recall the best advice she's ever received, Lucy told Empire magazine: "'Stay exactly who you are, fired up and ready to go.' It was from Helen Mirren.

"She is a wonderful, magical person. We were just texting each other."