Actress Gabourey Sidibe is earning raves as the lead in 'Precious'

You'd never guess it from meeting her on the street, but Gabourey Sidibe makes an incredibly convincing troubled, abused teenager.

The 26-year-old New Yorker plays the jarring titular role in "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire," which offers a yearlong glimpse into the life of a 16-year-old junior high school girl battling obesity, illiteracy, her second pregnancy and a horribly abusive mother.

The story comes from "Push," the gritty, memoir-style novel that in 1996 launched the career of author Sapphire, but the character is all Sidibe.

In person, decked out in a black dress and heels, and freshly primped makeup for a photo shoot, Sidibe glows with confidence.

She'd been studying psychology for a little less than two weeks at Lehman College in the Bronx when she auditioned, on a whim, for what would become a life-changing role.

Director/producer Lee Daniels, who joined Sidibe for interviews, said he offered her the part over more than 400 other potential Preciouses because she offered a distinction between acting and reality.

"I realized that if I used those other girls, they were Precious," Daniels said. "I cannot articulate it, other than (Sidibe's) spirit affected me, her smarts affected me, and I knew that I wouldn't be exploiting something that was not her. She's not the character."

Sidibe discussed her breakout debut and budding acting career.

Q. You went to your audition at the urging of a friend. Was it a whim, or was this a dream?

A. Oh, absolutely a whim. It was nowhere near a dream. The last thing I ever wanted to be was an actress ... I mean, I've always kind of dreamed of a life of fanciness, in a way, but I did not think I'd be an actress at all. I did not plan it.

Q. Both Precious and her mother, Mary, are difficult characters with difficult lives. Have you known these people in real life?

A. Yes, absolutely. I've certainly grown up with people who are like Precious, who are like Mary; I know a few Miss Rains (played by Paula Patton) and a few Ms. Weisses (Mariah Carey). Certainly, all my friends, their parents have gone through the whole, "Well, you gotta talk to the social worker in order to get your check, in order to keep food in the house, keep the lights on," and so forth. It's a very real story.

Q. Mo'Nique, who plays Mary, the abusive mother, is convincingly scary.

A. She is. Mary's scary. ... there's one thing that's really funny: I did a photo shoot with her for W magazine, and she grabbed me and said, "Precious!" and did it in that (Mary) voice, and it scared me! (laughs) It scared me because I've seen the film, and seeing the film is a completely different experience than making it, and I was scared of Mary from seeing the film.

Q. You've since completed another film. Do you think you'll ever return to school at this point?

A. I would love to. I was a psych major before all of this.

Whether or not I want a job in the field of psychology, I don't know anymore. But I certainly want to know all that there is on the subject. When will I have time to do so? God only knows. But for now I have been concentrating on acting, because I love doing it. I've fallen in love with it.