cnnheroes.com to nominate someone like annette who is making a difference. that is all for tonight. i hope you have a fantastic weekend. and "cnn spotlight: cameron diaz" starts right now. you're amazing! you're wonderful! you're -- you're -- >> cameron diaz. the golden state girl -- >> southern california. >> with the dazzling smile. and super sex appeal. >> this is awesome, y'all! >> oh, that's really hot and sexy. wow! >> her early years, unmasked. >> me coming from modeling to this business, nobody knew who i was. >> her journey from unknown to superstar. >> cameron, cameron! >> self-deprivation with sexuality. that is sort of the x-factor and that's what she's got.

>> and the new film that's got her bonding onscreen -- >> we are the greatest friends ever. >> and off. >> we're a good time. we are a lot of fun. >> "cnn spotlight: cameron diaz." >> from the very first moment she appears on screen -- >> that entrance. >> it's a good one, isn't it? >> cameron diaz is certified star. >> i'm very, very pleased with my entrance. >> let's rock this joint! >> it's 1994 and "the mask" releases, built around the antics of a-list comic actor, jim carrey. but a supporting actress with bombshell looks and a goofy

sense of humor has us at hello. >> tina carlyle, pleased to meet you. >> the pleasure is all mine. >> a lot of people just said, who's that girl. >> hollywood's latest enjenue. >> your first picture. you know not all pictures are like this? >> that's what they tell me. i'm waiting to find out. >> cameron celebrates her 21st birthday while filming this, her first movie, and in one of her earliest interviews confesses, the acting thing happened kind of quickly. >> a month and a half into the film, i went, this is going to be in theaters? i mean, duh! it finally dawned on me that i was doing actually a feature film that went into the theaters. ♪ love makes me treat you the way that i do ♪ >> you know, she looks so, so pretty in it. and i think, for many people, it was, oh, here's the new hot girl on the scene. and on the one hand, she's

beautiful. >> whoo! >> on the other hand, beautiful girls are a dime a dozen. so thing a lot of people went, okay, cool, here comes another one. i think very few people expected that 20 years later, we would still be talking about cameron diaz's career. ♪ >> just a few years before "the mask" is in theaters, cameron's growing up in long beach, california, where she attends hughes middle school. at long beach polytechnic high, she's a standout on the dance team, the polleettes. the tall, leggy blond easily attracts attention. a photographer takes notice and at 16, a modeling career launches. >> i did everything. anything anybody paid me -- no, i'm just kidding. i did, you know, fashion, i did shows, i did editorial, catalog, advertisement, commercial, i did all there was to do.

>> reporter: eventually, her breezy california girl good looks land her on the cover of "seventeen" magazine, a star on the rise, but supermodel? not so much. >> nobody knew who i was. you know, i wasn't known around the world. >> jcpenney. >> yeah, i did jcpenney, exactly. i was like may company and nordstrom's. everybody who got the catalog knew me. i mean, they knew me in seattle, san francisco. southern california. like, i was every day, every day, i was in the papers every day in los angeles. >> she gets some tv spots too. like this one, for coke. >> she got my message. >> i see i'm not the only one. >> the commercials are enough to give her the message. she wants more. >> i went into my commercial

agent's office and saw a script laying on her desk. >> when the studio new line sinema is casting for "the mask," cameron trips into a life-changing opportunity. >> i made a joke about being ready or capable of handling a feature comedy. of course, i was joking, and she took me literally. the director liked me and they eventually convinced me that i was capable of playing this part and they should take a chance on me. >> they rolled the dice. and the gamble on the unknown pretty girl from long beach pays off exponentially. >> hi. >> with that first part, cameron immediately develops an identity as an actress, according to entertainment writer, lewis vertel. >> "the mask" was a huge deal because it was a big movie everybody was talking about. everybody knew who she was after that, but also it established that she is just so willing to be as hot as possible and as crazy as possible.

>> fresh off her first film, cameron admits, her success is completely accidental. >> i didn't have a theagent whe began the film, i hooked up with a wonderful group of people and so far, so good. i didn't have anybody come knocking on my door. i think in this business, they do it a different way. they move in on you. >> even as a neophyte to hollywood, she's planting her next move while knowing right where she's at. the scene-stealing actress whose name you don't know, yet. >> right now, i'm just waiting for something i feel i can commit myself to and waiting for the right thing to come along. and i'm in square one, still. people don't know who i am and there's a lot of people who want to make sure they know who their star of the film is. >> coming up -- ♪ just don't know what to do with myself ♪

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jaws dropped over her debut performance in "the mask" and cameron diaz instantly finds herself in demand. >> starting off the career with "the mask," that doesn't hurt anybody.

you know, that opened a lot of doors for me. >> excuse me? >> the doors she goes through first are marked independent film. >> i'm not the one that's married. >> she co-stars in "she's the one" and then "feeling minnesota." it's not until 1997, three years after "the mask," that cameron makes another big studio film. >> everything's so perfect! >> her role in "my best friend's wedding" comes with a risk. after all, she's playing the spoiler to hollywood's reigning box office queen. >> she plays a character that women are supposed to hate. she's sort of effortlessly beautiful, she's there to take the man from julia roberts, and yet, she somehow is still appealing. >> ♪ don't know just what to do with myself ♪ >> there's a scene where she has to do cakaraoke and fails terriy

but everyone is smitten. >> the film becomes one of the biggest hits of 1997. but cameron's just warming up. >> mary, mary! >> the next year brings a performance that comes to define her career. >> oh, my god, ted! >> how are you? >> "there's something about mary" is the movie that made everyone fall in love with cameron diaz. >> the raunchy comedy about a guy who can't get over a long lost love might as well be called "there's something about cameron." >> this is a movie written about how irresistible she is, how we can't even figure out why we like her so much, she is so commanding. >> you know, i don't think they have enough meats on a stick. seriously. >> she is comfortable in that world of tomboyishness and grossout jokes. some actresses would have just said, hold on, i'm going to do

what with my hair? >> is that hair gel? >> that famous hair gel scene becomes a classic movie moment. >> she just went with it. she's clearly having some fun. >> the success of "there's something about mary" catapults cameron to the top ranks of female stars. her appeal undeniableable. >> she's never taken herself very seriously, which i think is a huge help for an actor. >> i know, it's crazy. >> if you can combine self-deprivation with sexuality, that is sort of the x factor and that's what she's got. >> she's also got that infectious laugh. [ laughing ] >> my family, we -- laughing is what we did together. we're always laughing. i come from a long line of chuckl chucklers. >> she chuckles all the way to the bank in 2000. >> nice bike.

>> the payday for "charlie's angels" was reportedly over $10 million. that put her in astute company with over actresses who were top paid at that time. >> there's a lot of combat and female bonding in "charlie's angels." >> good morning, angels. >> good morning, charlie! >> but what most people remember is one solo scene. >> the dancing scene in that movie, where she's like gyrating wildly, what other actress could pull off that charismatic wackiness? ♪ >> it's a rare cameron diaz film that doesn't feature some exuberant dancing. ♪ >> i think every movie should have a dance sequence in it. i don't care if assist horror movie. sci-fi. dance. ♪ >> there are even dance steps in

"shrek," the animated mega hit. >> you're amazing, you're wonderful, you're, you're a little unorthodox, i'll admit. >> cameron voices fiona in "shrek," which is a key character. really introduces cameron by way of her voice to a family audience. >> oh, my god, i'm having so much fun! ♪ >> audiences embrace her lighter work. but she demonstrates range in a series of dramatic roles. "vanilla sky." >> i live with this aching possibility that you might call me. >> martin scorsese's period film, "gangs of new york." >> i will open your throat, so help me god. >> and really playing against type in 1999's "being john malkovich." >> he has an ulcer right now due to suppressed childhood trauma. >> she's frumpy, she's not

playing off her looks at all, except maybe in a wink, to say, that's cameron diaz? it showed people that there is more to her than her beauty. >> as her career advances, cameron demonstrates she can deliver, whatever the genera. >> how do you do that? >> i always try to find the truth in my characters. nobody's wholly good or wholly bad, except for sociopaths. they're just human and i just try to find the human side of them. >> one role she's never played, at least in real life, a bride. she's opted not to marry, despite romances with some high-profile men. >> she's dated justin timberlake, alex rodriguez, these are people who have nothing in common, and it just proves that there's something about may thing is real. >> oh, hey, there. >> in 2011, she co-stars with one of her exes, justin timberlake, in the comedy hit, "bad teacher." >> the secret is, is that we're adults and we've moved on, you

know, justin and i love each other, we care about each other. both of our lives have gotten on >> she goes on in 2012 to co-star in "what to expect when you're expecting." >> i can do it! >> playing a woman about to have her first baby. >> ahhh! >> i love children. i have so many children in my life, i've been an aunty for 15 years, i would be so hope to having my own family, whenever's that meant to be. >> fit, fabulous, and 40 plus. coming up, cameron diaz enters a new phase of her life. >> when you just leave your doors open, things come in. that's just sort of how i live my life. if you wear a denture,

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cameron! show me that gorgeous smile! cameron, thank you! >> 2012. the california girl with the megawatt smile turns 40. and turns her attention to a new project, writing. the result, a health and nutrition book for women, "the body book." >> you've kind of mastered it, the art of aging. >> oh, thank you. >> how do you do it? >> consistency. it's all about consistency and about balance. i want people to understand that if they, you know, if they really, truly understand themselves on their deepest level, on the smallest part of themselves, which is on a cellular level, they understand the science of their body and how it works, then they can make different choices that allows them to have that in their lives, that allows them to create balance and to have everything that they want. >> and women clearly want

cameron diaz's device. when the book comes out in january, it quickly becomes a "new york times" best seller. >> she's very athletic, she clearly exercises and eats right. and women are always kind of looking for advice from believable people on that topic. >> believable and passionate. >> being able to live a long, healthy, vital, capable life doesn't just happen by itself. you need to put the work in, you need to do it. and it's not bad work, it's the good work, it's fun, it's delicious, it's, you know, it's engaged, it's present. and i think that that, you know, just makes for a better life. >> she almost had me saying, amen! hallelujah! >> preach on, because all that good living is clearly paying off for cameron. with three upcoming films, she's disproving the notion that 40 has to be a finish line for women in hollywood. >> action!

>> first up, "the other woman." >> i'm looking for mark. you must be his housekeeper. >> no, i'm his wife, kate. >> is this some kind of strippergraham or something. >> reporter: cameron plays a woman who finds out her seemingly perfect boyfriend has a wife. >> we got played by the same guy. tequila or do you want vodka. >> and another girlfriend. >> he must be cheating on both of us, because it's not me. >> played by supermodel, kate upton. >> do you think she had that made? >> when this one gets up from the beach chair with the white bikini, i think i even audibly said, in the theater, that ain't fair. that ain't fair. >> she's like the perfect 10, lemon tart, double d, obviously. >> at some point you, say, i play tennis. >> i expect to lose. >> right? >> i am mcenroe. >> haven't we all done that? seen the cutest thing ever, and been like, well! i mean, i'm cute too!

>> what i love about the film is that we quickly start to celebrate her as, you know, as we all become friends and understand that we're all just going through the sam thing, the same heartbreak, with the same man, of course. but we're still kind of going through the same thing and helping each other through. >> so what do you want to do? >> i want him to feel pain. >> the trio teams up to take revenge on the man in the middle. >> put the lawyer, the wife, and the boobs together and we know how to do it just as shady as he does. >> the friendship these characters develop in the process may seem unlikely. but -- >> there is something about cameron diaz where you want to hang out with her if you're a woman, or you find it conceivable that the other women on screen are having some fun with her. >> and it's obvious, these women have fun together, both onscreen and off. >> i am -- i'm feeling the girlfriend vibe here and i'm loving the girlfriend vibe. and it does feel like that you

guys kind of just became best friends. did you just kind of know of each other, but when you got together -- >> i didn't know either one of these -- >> who is cameron diaz? who is leslie mann? i don't know. >> but seriously, though, it feels like a real friendship. >> i met kate the year before we started working together, and cameron and i met a long time ago, but she doesn't remember our meeting. >> it was a party situation. >> it was a wrap party for a movie -- >> it was a tequila flats -- >> tortilla. >> cameron's good-natured humor has won her nurps friends and fans in hollywood. >> cameron diaz has established herself not just as a dependable actress, but someone who everybody believes is always goofy, always charismatic. >> got it! >> and she's mb who puts you at ease, because she's so in

control with how goofy and fun she is. >> there's more of her classic goofiness and signature sex appeal in the upcoming summer comedy "sex tape." >> i just had an idea. let's film ourselves having sex. >> that's a great idea this is your best idea ever. >> cameron showing, you don't have to be 20 to stay super seductive. >> she's not yet post-hot. i'm not sure when that will happen. maybe in her crypt. >> get up and out of bed! the city called. they're coming to inspect. you've got to clean this whole place up. >> this winter, audiences will see the actress tackle another genera in the musical remake of "annie." >> this is showing the breadth of what she does. i presume she'll be really funny in it and it is the kind of role where she's kind of turning the corner yet again on her career. >> hey, mr. will. look for me, pauline hannigan and like me on facebook. >> i don't like you in harlem, why would i like you on facebook? >> do you think you're better than me? >> i do think i'm better than

you. >> i think it's really that tomboy appeal that's really given her longevity. she's proven already she's capable of anything. >> for 20 years, the nearly 50 films, cameron has shown her skill, time and again, with no sign of her star fading. >> it's a funny thing, when you just leave your doors open, you know, things come in, and you never know what -- i couldn't force any of these things to happen. they are things that just, when i had the opportunity, i took them. and that's just sort of how i live my life, is just sort of keeping the doors open to whatever could possibly happen. because i couldn't think of a better life than this. >> i'm nischelle turner. thanks for joining us for "cnn spotlight: cameron diaz. #.

beyonce always goes big. from a secret album sensation -- >> beyonce dropped an incredible album. >> to the worldwide stage. >> there's nobody else that's singing like she is, there's nobody else giving the energy that she's giving on stage. >> it's been a path to superstardom that started with a shy little girl. ♪ >> beyonce was really a quiet kid, kind of to herself. >> whose father launched her career. >> beyonce automatically stood out. everybody would say that. >> r&b royalty, fashion icon, mother, and music mogul. tonight, in the spotlight, beyonce.