Quotes from Javier Bardem

I look at myself, and I see a Spanish person who's trying to be understood by an English-speaking audience and is putting a lot of energy into that, instead of into expressing himself freely and feeling comfortable.

An award doesn't necessarily make you a better actor.

I'm a huge fan of the director, Alejandro González Iñárritu, and his work, and I knew he was going to be an amazing actor's director, based on the performances that I saw in his movies.

I don't believe in stereotypes. Most of the time, stereotypes are just that.

I was emotionally and physically punched in the stomach. This is not a place where you go and deliver the lines and then you come back. It's kind of a life-changing experience. But it can't get better than this for any actor - this is like an opera.

You want to do your job well so that people in the future say, 'OK, he's not bad, let's hire him.'

I used to be a good party boy. I'm old. I'm an old man. You pay the consequences. I'm just fine with a couple of drinks, no more than that.

Many people out there don't have a choice in choosing their friends and the people they're being manipulated by. Thank God, I have that choice. I can use my judgment and choose.

Age has no reality except in the physical world. The essence of a human being is resistant to the passage of time.

I'm a great believer in stunt doubles. They do an amazing job.

Imagine the situation between Israel and Palestine. It's such a big mess. You can be on one side or the other. But what's clear is that there's an urgent need for a solution there and that's been dragging on for so long.

My concern is to continue respecting my work as I've done since I began as an actor and I could only do that if I'm strong enough to keep on doing what I think best in an artistic way.

I am always saying, 'I don't believe in God; I believe in Al Pacino.' And that's true. If I ever get a phone call saying 'Would you like to work with Al Pacino?' I would go crazy.

I enjoy my job as long as I can create a character, otherwise it's boring.

I want to act because I don't know how to do anything else.

I don't know how to drive a car. The only thing I can do is act, but it's not something I even feel comfortable doing.

When you are portraying somebody that has a very specific emotional weight, you feel like you're really starting to abandon your own body and go to someplace else.

I do respect people's faith, but I don't respect their manipulation of that faith in order to create fear and control.

I don't believe in God, I only believe in Al Pacino, and that's the truth.