Anne Hathaway thinks her 'work ethic' is the only thing she can control professionally

Anne Hathaway feels "defined by her work ethic" rather than her talent.

The 43-year-old actress has recalled realising early on that nothing was going to be "handed" to her in terms of a career in entertainment, and she has always strived to put as much effort as she possibly can into every project.

She told Harper's Bazaar magazine: "I think I just knew from a young age that although I'm really lucky in so many ways and grew up with certain privileges, there wasn't, like, this big life that was just going to be handed to me.

"I've always just felt defined by my work ethic, because my skill set is what it is and I have to work with what I have, but how hard I can work is something that I can control.

"And so I never want to pull up short and feel like I could have worked harder. If I know that I'm working hard, I can live with who I am."

As a child, the Princess Diaries star took dance classes, but she found it more of a struggle than acting or singing.

She recalled: "I couldn’t quite figure out why there was no advancement.

"At a certain point, the dancers jump, right? And I was going all the time, and I couldn’t jump in both senses of the word."