Shia LaBeouf [his new film is "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints"] says, “I’m a lonely dude. But, again, it’s the price. You subject yourself to weird [stuff], just so you can feel something. To be an actor, a true actor, you have to be brokenhearted.” [The Washington Post, October 17, 2006] That comment reminded [...]
Lisa Kudrow was recently up for an Emmy for her role as Valerie Cherish in “The Comeback.” Kudrow has commented, “She’s not based on any one person in particular, it’s more about people who have their goals and their sights on the wrong thing. This is about a woman who has a husband and a [...]
Too embarassed to say ‘No’ Many actresses choose to promote themselves and their films through revealing and sexy magazine spreads. Much as we may enjoy them, for the “stars” of those sexy photos, it may not always be so positive. Jessica Biel [left] wrote a letter that appeared in the Jan. ’04 edition of Seventeen [...]
Claire Danes on wanting acceptance Claire Danes admits that when she was growing up, she “wanted desperately to please, to be a good girl. I wanted acceptance. I still do.” Like many artists, she sought acceptance in renown: “A part of me desired fame because I associated it with love. That was a total mistake. [...]
Kate Bosworth – always learning Kate Bosworth [photo from "Superman Returns"] thinks “all actors are insecure.. I certainly am… I think almost all artists are insecure. I don’t ever watch myself and think, ‘That was great, I hit it out of the park!’ Never… “One of the things I love most about this job is [...]
Harry Dean Stanton – compelling authenticity “I play myself all the time… on camera and off. What else can I do?” Harry Dean Stanton [photo and quote from the HBO.com section for “Big Love”] Nicolas Cage thinks “Harry Dean exudes a spiritual awareness that’s steeped in deep sadness, and it’s so compelling to watch on [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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. [...]
Navi Rawat One of the pleasures of the tv series “Numb3rs” is a character [Amita Ramanujan - played by Navi Rawat] who is not only a math whiz, but a woman of exotic beauty, not the standard blonde [as appealing as many blonde actors may be]. Navi Rawat was born to a German mother and [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
“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 [...]
Sometimes I feel competitive when I see somebody else in a movie that’s really beautiful and really big, or when I’m vying for a role and I can’t get in and it’s the usual suspects — Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Connelly, all great actresses. Then I feel like a loser and I get sad. [...]