Quotes About Casting

I never went on an audition - when they were really looking at everybody.

I know when an actor goes in to audition, if they don't get the part, it's not because they're a bad actor at all; it's because it's not quite the right fit.

I come from theatre and I like the audition process.

I got 'Aurangzeb' because I gave an audition and passed it.

I don't like to audition. I just want people to give me parts.

I sometimes self-edit when it comes to auditions and go, 'They're not going to cast me, so I'm not going to do it.'

I've been in the industry from the age of 9, so I have an agent. That's how you get auditions.

As an actor, when you go for auditions, there are certain roles that come along and you think, 'I really want that one,' and Prince Arthur was definitely one of those.

In England, theater auditions are gentler experiences. You sit down with the director and talk about the play.

I've been asked far too often, 'Can you be blacker?' I've gotten done with auditions and heard, 'We're not going to go black with this character.'

I sure don't miss going out on auditions!

It's my favorite, when you see those auditions that you're just like, 'That's the guy.'

Most of the characters I've been offered have been very dominating and self-assured, maybe because of the way I look.

There aren't a lot of roles for sleepy-eyed black dudes.

It isn't often I get a part that enables me to play someone from the age of 13 up to 81.

I would get a lot of roles for the ethnic friend and then I would go in for that and not be ethnic enough. They wanted an Indian accent. They wanted something more very visually, clearly specific.

I've always made a point to play roles that aren't specified by their ethnicity.

The best situation is where they cast you and then they trust you.

A good actor is someone who knows how to take the part and make it real and make it honest and be effective in it. If it's in a funny movie and, as long as they are cast in an appropriate way, humor will come from it.

Directing's the best part. Whenever I've directed something, there's this feeling of demand and focus that I like. And secondly, it means that you've gotten through all the writing stuff, and the producing stuff, and casting, and prep, and all those stages that are seemingly endless. So directing is sort of the reward for all the work you put in before.

The antidote to color, to all the crap going through the minds of the people behind that casting table, is to sing so well that people go, Oh shit. You have to overcome the visual. You have to make the visual irrelevant. You have to overcome aurally. I knocked it out of the park in certain roles, and people suddenly thought, Where's this guy been? Well, I've been right here, incognegro.

Honestly, in retrospect, when I referred to the actors from 'Prince' as non-actors or non-professionals, it was actually a great disservice to them. The fact is that they are all actors and should be viewed that way by the industry. It was our casting process that was non-professional.

I once lost a role because I was told I am fair. They were looking for a village woman who is darker.

I'm not handsome enough to be James Bond. Maybe a villain, though.