Julia Stiles

has it all figured out. She might beg to differ, but the ’90s teen idol has long been making smart—may they be unintentional—decisions throughout her decades-long career. From her role as the illustrious Kat Stratford in

10 Things I Hate About You

in 1999, which would be her breakout and declare her a feminist icon, to a mainstay in the

Bourne

films, everyone’s favorite in

Save the Last Dance,

and a lead in

Riviera

.

Her latest role as Jessica Pressler, the journalist who penned the

New York

magazine viral article about former strip-club employees who drug and steal from their Wall Street clients, in the women-led adaptation

Hustlers

, was a project she was determined to be a part of. “I spoke to Lorene [Scafaria] over Skype for over an hour and told her all the reasons why I loved what she had written, and at the end she was like, ‘OK, well, there’s a process of casting, but if you have any questions, let me know,’ kind of wrapping it up. And I was like, ‘My question is what do I have to do to be in this movie?’ Stiles quips. We sat down at

Buca Osteria & Enoteca

to talk about what drew her to this role, lessons she’s learned in her career, and the one piece of advice she always tries to follow.

[Listicle particle error: Unhandled HTML element 'big' in post 2650796521 (context: Element not in supported or skip lists) Element HTML: Hustlers]

[Listicle particle error: Unhandled HTML element 'big' in post 2650796521 (context: Element not in supported or skip lists) Element HTML: Hustlers]

[Listicle particle error: Unhandled HTML element 'big' in post 2650796521 (context: Element not in supported or skip lists) Element HTML: 10 Things I Hate About You]

[Listicle particle error: Unhandled HTML element 'big' in post 2650796521 (context: Element not in supported or skip lists) Element HTML: 10 Things I Hate About You]

Is there anything else you do for health and wellness?

“First thing in the morning I like to drink water with some lemon in it. I feel like that’s really good at keeping colds at bay. I also take magnesium, which seems to help, and probiotics. You know, I was the kid in the lunch line that asked for broccoli, so I always try to have a lot of vegetables at least once a day.”

Best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

“‘Seek happiness,’ from my mom. She’s said that to me at times. It means different things to me, but that it’s sort of a choice to gravitate towards the people and things that make you happy.”

If you fall into a rabbit hole on your phone, what are you doing?

“Music videos and concert videos. I love music.”

Want more stories like this?

Hustlers’ Lili Reinhart on Swearing off Low-Rise Jeans & All That Fake Vomit

Eiza González on Being Bullied & Dating in the Limelight

Danielle Macdonald Is On the Rise