Quotes from Rhys Darby

My youngest son has a very clear idea of what he wants to be when he grows up: he wants to be Indiana Jones, Batman and Jack Sparrow. Yes, all three at the same time. So he basically wants to be an archaeologist who wears tights and fights crimes on pirate ships. That's pretty cool, huh?

Certainly, when I left New Zealand, there was no career there as a comedian. I was doing more live gigs than anyone, and I was maybe doing three a week. Even then, it would often be the same people in the audience, going, 'I saw you on Tuesday, mate!'

I've been lucky in life, that's for sure, but it all started with being born in the greatest country in the world - New Zealand.

After 3 years, I left the army at the ripe old age of 20, but I'd like to think some of the skills are still with me. I'm great at physical movement; I can still remember Morse code, and perhaps most importantly, I can fold my socks up into little balls with smiley faces.

In New Zealand, we have a thing called 'tall poppy syndrome,' which, you might not have heard of it, but it's essentially where - it happens in small populations usually, but can actually happen in the U.K. - where, if someone sticks out, they get their head cut off because they are being outside the ordinary or they are showing off.

It's my mission to get the New Zealand accent into a Hollywood show. I'm proud of the way we talk, and I'm here to represent it. Kiwis are everywhere: they're in every city of the world. I've checked. We have a voice... it's a bit of a funny one at times, but it's one that I want to promote.

The freeways of America are like giant veins twisting and turning, rushing life from one zone to the next. The landscape is a giant body just lying there feeling the rumble.

I don't think you can beat a costumed monster. It's brilliant. I'll take that over CGI any day.

A touring comic's typical day roughly amounts to an hour of being laughed at and 20 minutes of being photographed. The other 22 hours and 40 minutes are spent in silence.

For anyone who's a fan of the 'X-files' show - I mean, I have the ultimate role. I got to deal with Mulder. I got to talk to him; I had a fight sequence with him. Really, for anyone who is a fan of the show, I think I fulfilled a lot of young boys' dreams.

Timing is a very important part of being a father. You should never show your kids things before they're ready. Especially with movies. Toys like Lego are okay because the fact that your 3-year-old can't understand the instructions ultimately leads you to constructing it yourself... the secret plan all along.

I think of myself as an underground name. Quite a cult comic.

I loved the army, but it didn't really love me. I used to get into trouble because I thought outside the square.

Comedy shouldn't be restrained under the belt of normality.

I had dreams of becoming an officer and a gentleman. But hey: One out of two ain't bad.

I love airports because funny things always happen at them. They're giant complexes full of urgency, seriousness, and confusion. Where am I supposed to be? Which way do I go? And that's just the staff.

When I grew up, one of comedy idols was Rowan Atkinson, who of course is Mr. Bean and uses physical comedy. Same with Jim Carrey. Both of those guys. And Peter Sellers. Most of my comedy idols are physical comics.

I don't know what it is about 'Godzilla,' but as far as I'm concerned, the more versions of it, the better.

A lot of new dads don't realise that you can't take your 5-year-old along to see something like 'The Avengers.' Modern superhero films are too violent, and the dialogue is far too convoluted for a child.

You've got to have a likeability factor, I think, in your comedy characters. If the guy's really, really funny but you just don't like him or her, then you're never going to root for them.

That's one of the best things about characters like Indiana Jones. I mean, he's funny. He's done really wicked things.