Ian McKellen on timing Ian McKellen admits in a recent article that it has taken time and life experience to develop the self-confidence that now helps fuel his dynamic roles. “Suppose it had been me who played Tom Jones [1963], not Albert Finney?” he said. “There was never any question of me playing those sorts [...]
Kristen Bell Kristen Bell (“Veronica Mars”) noted recently how much of an impact acting can have on an actor: “It’s sort of a weird profession.. in that it manipulates your emotions. When you’re crying, you’re really crying. You’re not crying about anything you care about, but you still have the cry inside you, that feeling [...]
Brad Pitt In a magazine interview, Brad Pitt once candidly admitted, “I’ve got a couple of friends that might as well be family, and I’ve caught myself just ordering one of them to do something because you get accustomed to people doing things for you… It’s the money and the power, it just crushes everything.” [...]
Amanda Bynes Amanda Bynes, talking about going to college, commented, “I have such a busy mind and it’s really hard for me to do one thing at a time. I can’t only be acting. I have to either be reading something or drawing. It’s hard for me to sit still.” Finding it “hard to sit [...]
Cherry Jones Cherry Jones [left], earned a Tony nomination for her acting in a stage production of A Moon for the Misbegotten [2002] but was “nearly paralyzed by a profound case of stage fright” according to a Time Out New York article. She said it was from “Living up to the greatest performance I have [...]
“Brokeback Mountain” director Ang Lee was keen on teaching Heath Ledger how “to capture stillness” – one of [Ledger’s character Ennis] Del Mar’s signature traits – which was hard for Ledger, who can get twitchy. “Sometimes I find it hard sitting still, usually when I’m in the spotlight or even in rehearsal. My nervous energy [...]
Philip Seymour Hoffman In a recent interview, Philip Seymour Hoffman [Best Actor Oscar nominee for “Capote”] admitted he used drugs and alcohol earlier in his life. A lot. “It was all that stuff. It was anything I could get my hands on. I liked it all.” He got sober, he says, because “You get panicked. [...]
Sarah Polley “I think you have to keep your distance from mainstream Hollywood in order to be a normal human being,” Sarah Polley [left] once commented. [imdb.com] She continued, “I mean, I work there, and I like being there, but I love having an anonymous life. I think there’s definitely such a thing as being [...]
M. Night Shyamalan cast and directed Bryce Dallas Howard [photo] in a key role in the 2004 film “The Village” and recently commented : ”There’s a purity to her that comes through in her acting. When an emotion comes through, it’s unadulterated. The gunk from fame and money — all those things that would gunk [...]
Mainstream film/tv studios are considered a “boys’ club” with good reason: they usually make story and casting decisions based on adolescent male values [eg fast action, violence, t&a] – not exactly high spiritual or creative ideals. Casting often excludes and limits actors with talent. Indira Varma Indira Varma [“Bride & Prejudice” etc] notes in the [...]
Many talented people have difficulties in finding and keeping relationships that are meaningful and satisfying. Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Johansson [photo: with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers in "Match Point"] recently commented about particular challenges for actors: “I don’t think human beings are monogamous by nature. It’s difficult – you have to put a lot of effort into a [...]
Heather Graham “Acting is telling a story, and you’re part of telling that story. In some ways therapy helps more than acting class. You realize why you operate in certain ways.” Heather Graham [in our interview several years ago about making "Lost in Space"] expressed one of the most valuable and positive reasons for therapy [...]
A demanding career A number of actors advise pursuing this very demanding career only if you can’t feel right doing anything else. And a number of highly talented actors change direction into writing, producing or some other vocation. You need to be aware of what is really driving you. Maria Bello on being of service [...]
Maybe all of us need to alter our feelings and state of mind at times. Mountain climbing, skydiving, yoga, using drugs and alcohol are all ways, as noted by psychologist David Duncan in his article Human’s Need To Alter Consciousness. [This is an article on a huge addiction research and treatment site that I am [...]
“Hollywood has never embraced me. Part of that is my fault because of my behavior in the past..” [imdb.com Jan 18 02] > related topic page: self-limiting ~ ~ ~ “Unrealized talent does not make a comfortable chair, unless you’ve sat on it your whole life, then it makes it a dangerously comfortable chair.” [ericrobertsactor.com] [...]
“I know what it’s like to loathe oneself. To feel that deep self-loathing. “It’s painful and ugly and f**ing unwanted. “And it got in the way. I can dip in there, into the old black-Irish melancholy. “You think ‘Am I smart enough? Am I equipped enough to deal with it all?’ “You don’t want it [...]