Sandra Bullock: Having a Child 'Forces You to Get Your Sh*t Together'
Being a mother and going through a highly publicized divorce has definitely changed Sandra Bullock's entire outlook on life.
The 51-year-old actress is opening up in a candid Q&A with her Our Brand Is Crisis costar, actress Zoe Kazan, for Glamour magazine. Bullock admits that she only started feeling like an adult "about five years ago," and it's no coincidence that her adorable son, Louis Bardo, is also five years old. Bullock adopted Louis from New Orleans in 2010, the same year she filed for divorce from her ex-husband, Jesse James.
"I literally went, 'I know who I am,'" Bullock explains about her big life change. "Not completely. But about two years ago all the puzzle pieces came together. I went, 'This is who I like. This is who I am.'"
WATCH: Sandra Bullock's Ex-Husband Jesse James -- 'Losing My Son' Was the Hardest Part of the Split
"Motherhood and divorce -- and not just divorce but the onslaught," she further explains when asked about the sudden inspiration. "Again, I let it affect me. I heard it all. And I had to step back and go, 'I have the greatest gift in little Louis, and I’m gonna let him see the woman I want him to know.' So a child forces you to get your sh*t together. In the best way."
Bullock also talks about her son being African American, and how this makes her think about racial struggles in the U.S. daily.
"You see how far we've come in civil rights -- and where we've gotten back to now. I want my son to be safe," Bullock worries. "I want my son to be judged for the man he is. We are at a point now where if we don't do something, we will have destroyed what so many amazing people have done. You look at women's rights; it's turning into a mad, mad world out there. But sometimes it needs to get really loud for people to say, 'I can't unsee this.' If I could ride in a bubble with him for the rest of his life, I would. But I can't."
As for being one of the most liked actresses in Hollywood, the Minions star says being in the business is no excuse for bad behavior.
"If you were an a**hole before you got in this business, you're just a bigger a**hole," she says bluntly. "I think you are who you are. I didn't get into [this business] till later in life. Who I am as a person hasn't changed. I was already baked."
Still, she does admit to some surprisingly wild times in her younger days.
"I did some stupid things in college," she reveals. "Fact that I didn't wind up in jail: miracle. Miracle! So I'm grateful for that."
And she also still has her high school cheerleading outfit.
"That might come in handy some sexy night," she jokes. "I don't know who I'm saving it for."
... May we suggest her rumored boyfriend, 49-year-old model Bryan Randall?
WATCH: Inside Sandra Bullock's Romantic Double Date With Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux
A source recently told ET that there have been recent sightings of Bullock out and about with a toddler. Watch the video below for more on Bullock reportedly adopting a second child!