Whoopi Goldberg isn’t bowing out any time soon. 

In a wide-ranging conversation for Interview Magazine, the EGOT-carrying performer/host/superstar talked about everything from activism and legacy to why she’s still chasing surprising new projects — including her dream of playing a horror-movie monster. 

“For years I’ve been trying to get somebody to write me a horror movie. I want to be the monster,” the 70-year-old icon told interviewer Jeremy O. Harris. She continued, “I want to be the thing under the bed, and you are not thinking that it’s me because I’m so sweet. I’m Whoopi, but it’s Whoopi knocking people off left and right.”

Goldberg shared that her life is a series of fights worth continuing. Reflecting on decades of social movements, she pushed back on critics who now label progress as a fad. “None of us were woke. They just woke up, but we’ve been up the whole time, watching their backs.” Activism for Goldberg isn’t performative; it’s a lifestyle. 

The interview also dug into Goldberg’s relationship to craft and culture. She talked about how seeing Nichelle Nichols on “Star Trek” shaped her career and why representation matters, noting that early role models changed what the future looked like for Black performers. Goldberg credits those trailblazers with opening the doors she later walked through and stayed in. 

She said, “That’s how I got the job [on “Star Trek: The Next Generation”], because I explained to [“Star Trek” creator] Gene Roddenberry, ‘Gene, I love sci-fi. But Lieutenant Uhura is the very first Black representation of us in the future. And not only is she representing us, but she’s not a mammy. She is svelte and beautiful.’” Goldberg informed Roddenberry that he created the first Black person represented in the future and that epiphany led him to creating another role for her “in the future.”

On modern life and technology, Goldberg admitted a healthy skepticism. “I’m trying to fall in love with the internet, but I’m not a big fan of it,” she shared. She’s wary of the internet’s slippery line between real and fake. “I’m not sure about what I’m seeing because I don’t know if it’s AI-generated,” she said, signaling how disorienting the digital age can be for artists who value authenticity. 

She also doubled down on her lack of desire to cohabitate. She said, “I don’t want to live with anybody. I lived with my daughter. That’s all I can handle. I have lots of people that I love, but I don’t need them living with me. I don’t need to be sleeping with them.” Goldberg explained why she prizes independence even as she cherishes loved ones. She’s very self-aware that she’s selfish with her time and energy. She said, “I’m not good at relationships because you have to think about other people.” Between work and family, Goldberg said she’s got enough on her mind. 

“I don’t necessarily get lonely because there’s enough people around who don’t let me. But most people are not comfortable being alone because we’ve been taught that there’s something wrong with you if you’re not a pair, that being singular, eating singular, is a bad thing.” She continued, “Sometimes you don’t want to eat with other people. Sometimes you just want to go and have some pasta. You don’t want to say, ‘Do you want red wine or white wine?’ I don’t give a f*ck what you want.”

For fans who wondered whether Whoopi would slow down, the answer is no. She’s still plotting projects, wants to try new genres, and — in true Whoopi fashion — even named her imaginary rollercoaster “Whoops!” As she said, “There are a zillion things I’m interested in.” And it seems she has plans on pursuing those interests.