Quotes About Acting

I was never built to play the hero. Physically or emotionally... And they're not as rewarding to play. At least for me.

Being an actor, imitating to the point of inhabiting the lives of others, may simply be a way of continuing to do what I learned to do as a boy - to travel, mentally and physically.

Towards the end of 'Dark Shadows,' the sets are cracking and bleeding, but so is Angelique. The fact that she breaks apart physically as well as mentally lends an added dimension, and I just loved playing that.

I've been told I'm bright. But when I act, I get incredibly stupid. I feel my intellect slowing down. I feel it happening physically. And that's not negative in acting!

Acting is strenuous, both physically and mentally. But if you are passionate about it, nothing can be more exciting than acting.

As actors, we exhaust ourselves emotionally and physically, which no one sees.

We can't really do any improv on 'The Big Bang' because we don't understand a lot of what the dialogue means to begin with, because of the physics jargon.

It was only in the second year of my Ph.D. that I started acting. I wasn't in school plays or anything; I was in bands, but I wasn't cool. There's no such thing as a cool physics person, is there?

One of the best ways to change is to act as if you are the person you want to become. When you behave as if you are a different person, you change on a very basic level - even your physiology changes. When actors and actresses perform, their body chemistry is altered by the roles they play.

I wouldn't be able to act like Al Pacino or play the piano like Dr. John, But I could probably act better than Dr. John and play the piano better than Al Pacino.

Music is something that I've been passionate about. I play the piano and sing, but I always knew that it was never going to be my bread and butter. I was very interested in acting.

For me, acting is all about the aesthetic. I just want to keep honing my craft. Not that I'm taking myself too seriously, but every artist should consider himself Picasso. Otherwise, you're doing yourself an injustice.

Each time that you're playing a character, it's hard to pick a favorite.

I think first impressions are important when you pick up a script.

If you have to change something about you to be in a part, I don't think it's easy to do. You should just pick the part where you can just be yourself.

If you love acting and you've ever experienced theater, then you know that in a movie it's almost impossible to live out that experience, unless you're a Pacino or a De Niro or somebody who gets to pick their parts.

I wouldn't say I'm drawn to dark roles, and it's not like I pick and choose.

I've only gotten directly offered two or three movies, ever. I don't have the luxury of being able to say no a lot, and I don't really have the luxury of just getting to pick and choose certain things. If I did, I probably would choose even more different roles than I've played.

What's been nice is that I've been able to direct from a very idealistic place. I've never had to make my living as a director, which gave me a chance to choose material I feel passionate about. The directing allows me to not have to grab any acting role that comes along. I can pick and choose a little bit.

About a year after leaving drama school or a year and a half - and I was working solidly ever since leaving drama school - I picked up 'Game of Thrones.'

At drama school, I always picked the really evil roles. It's a great way to deal with your everyday emotions.

Once, Naseeruddin Shah told me that the wafer shop was the best acting school that I could have attended. And I completely agree. I observed every customer very minutely and picked up some quirk or the other. Later, I used those experiences while playing different characters.

I was born first to music. But I went into acting because my father knew so much about music he intimidated me. So, I picked an art form, he knew nothing about. So I could be my own man.

TV sort of picked up for me before my theater career did.