Jamie Lee Curtis wanted to be a cop or social worker

Jamie Lee Curtis thought she'd work in "law and order".

The scream queen icon - known for her roles in the likes of the 'Halloween' franchise - has reflected on the path her life has taken and admitted she didn't expect to land a career on screen.

She told Extra: "I thought I would be a cop. I thought I would be a police officer, a corrections officer. I thought maybe I'd be a social worker.

"I'm good with people. I believe in law and order. I thought that that would be my path. Instead, it took me here.”

The 64-year-old star is in a celebratory mood after landing her first ever Academy Award nomination as she found herself on the best supporting actress shortlist for her role as Deirdre Beaubeirdre in 'Everything Everywhere All At Once'.

She gushed: "I feel like I've discovered a secret room in my house that I've lived in for, you know, a long time that was sort of papered over… because I had a defense wall up because I never even wanted to dream about it… I never thought it would happen.”

Jamie Lee - whose parents are Hollywood icons Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh - admitted the idea of an Oscar nomination and her glittering career seemed farfetched, as did even the idea of working as an actor.

She added: “I never thought I would be an actor, let alone get the opportunities I’ve had, so for me, it was just this secret room that has been opened since that morning [the nominations were read] and I keep going in it and sitting in the room going, ‘Right…’ It's just thrilling.”

She pointed to her own journey of self discovery and learning to "make good choices", pointing to her family with husband Christopher Guest as well as her professional life.

She added: "The beautiful part of maturing as an adult is the ability to learn who you are… Not to jack my own line from ‘Freaky Friday,’ but, you know, ‘Make good choices’ and you start making better choices — and then you end up here.”