“CNN Spotlight: Cameron Diaz” premieres April 25 at 10 p.m.
Story highlights
At 41, Cameron Diaz has amassed more than 40 movie credits
The actress says she's been open to all opportunities
Diaz: "When you leave your doors open, things come in"
“It’s a funny thing,” Cameron Diaz recently told CNN of her career. “When you just leave your doors open, things come in.”
The latest project to walk through that open door is “The Other Woman,” a romantic comedy about a married man who has not one but two other mistresses. When Diaz’s character Carly discovers that her boyfriend is actually a married man, she teams up with his wife and the other other woman to exact their revenge.
It’s exactly the type of bawdy romp that Diaz has built her career on. With more than 40 credits to her name, several of the more popular ones – “The Mask,” “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” “There’s Something About Mary,” “Bad Teacher” – just so happening to fit the nebulous “romantic comedy” label.
“I couldn’t force any of these things to happen,” said Diaz, whose entry to the industry was as a teen model. “When I had the opportunity, I took them. And that’s just sort of how I live my life, just keeping the doors open to whatever could possibly happen.”
Her life philosophy has paid off handsomely for the 41-year-old actress, particularly with the “Shrek” franchise, in which she voices the princess ogre Fiona. But, perhaps more importantly, it’s left her fulfilled.
“I couldn’t think of a better life than this,” Diaz said. “It was just … it just happened.”
CNN’s Megan Thomas contributed to this report.