Sandra Bullock sat down with Matt Lauer on The Today Show this morning to discuss her new passion and her new baby.

Bullock showed poise and excitement while discussing her love of New Orleans and the work she’s doing for the Warren Easton Charter High School there.

Bullock also credited her friends “filled with massive amounts of integrity” for helping her maintain her privacy in difficult times. “They know if they screw up … I will cut them,” she joked.

The only time Bullock cracked during the interview was when Lauer reveals that he was instructed by a local New Orleans journalist, “Do me a favor. Be nice to Sandra because she to us here is a hero.”

“Wow,” she said. “It’s making me teary.”

School board member Arthur Hardy echoed the sentiment, “This whole city has fallen in love with her. She belongs to us. Don’t mess with Sandra. It’s like: You hurt her, you hurt us. You better be ready for a fight.”

You can watch the entire interview below:

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