Quotes from Joel Edgerton

The first video I ever watched was on a Beta system because everyone thought Beta was the way but then it ended up being video so we backed the wrong horse.

There's a stage where you're desperate to get a job, and you're waving your hands in a sea of nothingness, going, 'Please, please, please! I'm over here - give me a job!'

I have an issue with the commercial aspect of moviemaking: I don't see why a movie can't make a lot of money and also be good.

The nature of human beings is that we're competitive, and the chances are there's someone out there who's going to work harder than you and want it more than you.

Whenever you're trying to do your own take on a classic piece of literature, it's almost like you're trying to swim up your own stream or drive down your own path.

I love what I do, but it occurs to me I may have handed over a large portion of my life to fiction.

I can't sing or dance.

If, at the end of the day, I can look back and see pictures of all the characters I've played, and there's a smorgasbord of weirdos and interesting, odd, different characters, I'd be so happy.

The tricky thing becomes: Do you know yourself well enough to then portray that on screen? And for me, I find that really hard. I'd rather hide behind accents and funny walks.

There's the pressure of being a No. 1 on the call sheet, being a lead actor. There's almost this feeling like being captain of the team. You want to put a bit of energy into actually setting a good example.

In Australia, there aren't a lot of people committed to art, so these communities form that are dedicated to music, theater, cinema, but they're very small. So, they tend to move ahead on the power of collaboration, enthusiasm and creativity.

I'm hardly digging trenches for a living. I'm getting to tap into my boyhood fantasies of being a larger-than-life character.

You have to stick to what you love and purse that at all costs. Don't choose money first; it won't make you happy.

Fighting in the ring or cage is very much different from fighting in the street. Fighting in the street is very much fueled by anger, pride, and male dominance and ego.

Part of the privilege of being an actor is the people you get to work with.

That's one of the great privileges, being an actor, is that someone pays you and sends you off to learn about something that otherwise you'd never know about.

I think I'd be too scared to direct my first movie and put myself in the center.

Actors are excused from a lot of things, and we get away with a lot... I find it equally interesting and exciting as it is disgusting and bizarre.

Every job leaves its residue, a bit of extra knowledge, a new skill-set.

Actors want to act; actors want to emote. It's like the emotional equivalent of tearing your shirt off and screaming to the heavens: you want to express, and you want to be seen to be expressing.

I had a bit of a martial arts background from when I was a teenager: I did a bit of karate.

Sometimes Hollywood manages to knock a movie in its teeth so hard that it never manages to get back up.

There's definitely a fascination with crime stories and stories of characters acting out against authority.

I think it's great to be able to go and watch a short film before you watch a feature.