Quotes from Mekhi Phifer

With my first son I cut his umbilical cord and everything, so I'm a hands-on father, to say the least.

I've dated interracially a lot. I grew up in Harlem, so I've dated Latins, Dominican, Guyanese, Cuban, black, white.

I'm from Harlem, born and raised there.

I grew up in a rough environment. You want to be strong and have your presence felt out there. That attitude reflects how people see you.

When you become an actor, at some point you look for something that brings you back to your roots. You find something that people around your neighborhood can relate to. People that you're close with can relate to.

Toronto is like a smaller, safe New York.

When I did 'Clockers,' I didn't even think about having a career in acting, I just thought, 'Wow, this is cool. I get to do a little movie.'

I tend to play more true-to-life characters in real situations.

I've gotten to travel all over the world and meet all kinds of people and do all kinds of great things, so it's, like, surreal. It just lets you know how time flies, especially when you're having fun. It seems like time keeps going by faster as I get older.

I don't really like hospitals that much. People are sick; sometimes it can be depressing. There's people going through a lot of pain in there. It has that funny smell.

Rap is definitely a youthful expression.

I'm a big road trip guy. I'm the guy who gets in the RV and drives across country. And when you do that, you really get to see small-town America.

I'm a soccer dad at heart. I want five kids, and I want to get married. I want to coach Little League.

My agents usually get a breakdown of all the projects that are out there. When I got 'Divergent,' they hadn't finished the script. They knew they wanted the leader of the Dauntless to have a certain demeanor and energy. They had me read a short monologue, and I got the part.

I think, in any artist's mind, you can't just be into yourself. You have to look at the world in an objective view.

I hated how Sam Rothstein got manipulated by Sharon Stone's character in 'Casino.' I mean, I just hate how he gets manipulated; that just gets ridiculous to me. I know it's historic, but I hated that.

There's no question that I'm African-American. OK? I'm a black man. We're not going to escape that.

When you're working and making money, that's all good, but there has to be something that provides a substance, I think.

I loved the extended version of 'Aliens' because it shows just a little bit more that you don't see and what they always show on television.

In the early '80s, it was hard to find celebrities you can identify with if you lived in the hood. There weren't any rap videos at the time.

I've done 21 films in eight years, and I've said 'No' more times than I've done films.