Quote Of The Day By Emmy Rossum: 'Women Are Always Told 'You Can Have It All.' You Can, But That Actually Means...'

Emmy Rossum knows what it takes to make it big in Hollywood, and for her, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication. And her early life showed how determined she was to succeed. Born in 1986 in New York, Rossum largely grew up under the care of her mother, and she quickly found her footing as a singer in the Children's Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera. Although she had a solid foundation in music, Rossum diverted to being a child actor in shows like "As the World Turns." She steadily gained momentum in the early 2000s in notable films such as "Mystic River" and "The Day After Tomorrow."

But the film that really put her on the map was 2004's "The Phantom of the Opera." Starring alongside Gerard Butler, Rossum's musical roots gave her an advantage in excelling in her role as the beautiful Christine. She earned a Golden Globe nomination for her performance and won a Critics Choice Award and a Saturn Award in 2005. 

Things continued to look up for Rossum, as she found further success with the hit TV show "Shameless," where she successfully fought for equal pay after discovering she was earning significantly less than co-star William H. Macy. Rossum received various TV award nominations for playing the fierce and loyal Fiona Gallagher, before going on to star in TV series' "The Crowded Room" and "Furious."

Rossum is certainly a successful over-achiever, who seems as if she's accomplished everything in life. In her mind, women can achieve everything they want to, though she's more than conscious of the cost. That is why Rossum's quote is our chosen quote of the day.

"Women are always told, 'You can have it all.' You can, but that actually means you have to do it all. And it comes at a cost. And often that cost is not your job and not your kid, but you." Emmy Rossum spoke these words in a segment of the "Call Her Daddy" podcast in July 2026, where she sat with host Alex Cooper and spoke honestly on a variety of topics, from Rossum's marriage mistake at 21 proving a lesson to women everywhere to her experiences with being a mother raising her two children. 

Rossum gets realistic about her life as a working mother juggling her successful career and looking after her kids. She also touched on her childhood and how having only her mother as her parent affected her adulthood and how she raised her own children in turn. But throughout her life, Rossum has understood that you can't do it all without being stretched thin and losing something in the process.

Emmy Rossum's words bring us back down to Earth when it comes to the inspirational quote about women being capable of reaching for the stars and having it all. And despite achieving some momentous things in her life, the "You're Not You" star must have had a healthy dose of realism some time in her career. Rossum's quote confronts the notion of whether it's worth having it all if you lose your sense of self along the way.

Rossum also broached the scary possibility of losing connection with your family and even the risk of losing your career in the effort to reach the top. It is an uncomfortable truth, but one which applies to almost every aspect of life. In short, nothing in life is free, and there are always consequences and side-effects to every path we choose to walk on. 

• "I've learned to take jobs as an actress that is meaningful to me because I've never taken a job for the money."
• "I know that I am my worst critic. I know that if I can walk away from the set at the end of the day and feel that I did the best job I could and feel proud, that's what will satisfy me."
• "I think for me the biggest lesson is that sometimes it's okay to do a little bit less."
• "Being naked in character is very easy because it's just playing pretend. You're someone else, you don't feel like yourself."
• "I'm interested in things that make me uncomfortable or scared because it says that there's something about me or society that I need to think more deeply about."