Ninety percent of the preparation we do as actors is just jive. It doesn't do anything.

We thought sex was free. Sex is not free. There's a price to be paid emotionally, physically, even legally. Sex isn't a casual thing. It's a huge thing.

I think I've been in situations where they looked at me and just see some rich white guy - they don't see me at all.

I got an agent. He said, what do you wanna do, and I said, I want an Oscar nomination. That's your job, that's what I'm paying you for. And I got it.

I'll tell you this about the Oscars - they're real.

There are some older women out there who are just knockouts, real beauties, and they're not getting the roles they should.

The bar raises as you go.

I'm really proud of the writing on Door to Door, and I think that's the Emmy that meant the most - the writing.

That red carpet has to be felt to be believed.

Oh yeah, that's the Holy Grail, Pirates of the Caribbean. Johnny Depp, he's the real deal, isn't he? He doesn't get the girl, and he doesn't care.

I'm a firm believer that character is highly overrated. Character is a trick that we do with the audience's collusion.

I was a dog in a past life. Really. I'll be walking down the street and dogs will do a sort of double take. Like, Hey, I know him.

When I watch a film I get swept away. I don't really watch the camera.

We must admit that it is quite common that people do have affairs with their leading ladies and men.

Directors work 10 times harder than anyone else. Get paid a quarter.

We all want to be 20 again and have that first sense of love.

I'm not against watching myself, but I miss a lot of it. I've got two little kids who we don't let watch TV.

Nobody became an actor because he had a good childhood.

Everyone hooks up with George Clooney. He's a genuinely cool guy. He's using his powers for good.

When I was in New York, I was making a living. We had a summer house and a car that I could put in a garage. That's something for a stage actor.

The only people who do plays in LA are people who can't get jobs in TV shows.

I'm sure I have a process, but it mostly takes place in my dreams.

A favorite cast? Lisa Kudrow, Anthony Hopkins, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, and my wife.

Yeah, I made it. It sneaks up on you. You're some schmuck and you wake up one day and you go, Good God, I'm the cheese.

It started with the Godfather, this operatic violence. I don't know.

When Fargo came out, I hired a publicist for the first time in my life. I thought, if ever I was going to make it, that was then.

Ninety percent of the preparation we do as actors is just jive. It doesn't do anything.

I do them all for the money, I really do.

I have a tendency to say yes to a script or no to a script. Not yes based on a rewrite.

The Spirit Awards are great too, they'll say anything because they're not televised. Another great drinking night.

I think theater is powerful. The best experiences I had in the theater are more powerful than the best experiences I had in movies.

Stephen King writes a lot of things that are really charming and quirky, and that are more ironic than horror.

If I like the story and it's well written, and it's a character I want to play and they'll pay me, then I decide to do it.

Shameless is a rough show, and it's not for everyone, but it's also beautiful.

It's hard to be depressed around a ukulele. You just pick it up and you're halfway home.

Actors love mental disorders, dialects, and corsets. Give them one of the three and they're happy.

What's fascinating is that when you write a script, it's almost a stream of consciousness. You have an idea that it means something, but you're not always sure what. Then when you get on the set, the actors teach you.

Young actors often don't think of the consequences of doing nudity or sex scenes. They want the role so badly that they agree to be exploited, and then end up embarrassing family, friends, and even strangers.

I've seen many actors go awry by making the wrong choices early on.

Actors are able to trick themselves into treating anything as if it's fantastic. It's a kind of madness really.

David Cronenberg knows what we actors do as artists.

I like doing them and they're ridiculous and the actors can improvise a lot, and they don't have to be really realistic characters that hit a very specific tone as in a feature film. They're really fun, I want to make more of them definitely.

I'm not in the business of becoming famous. And that's the advice I give to younger aspiring actors. Work onstage and do the little roles. In the end it's not important to be seen. It's important to do. There's a lot of disappointment in this business, but my family keeps me grounded.

Actors get pigeonholed very quickly, particularly movie actors. In the theater, one is more used to casting people against type and trusting that their talent and skill will get them through.

Comedians are not usually actors, but imitations of actors.

I was very pleased you know, and I was afraid that I might stick out, but I didn't. My happiest thing about that picture is that I proved that American actors can speak as well and also fit in with an ensemble like that.

I've worked with a lot of really fine actors, both on stage and on screen. The level of their game lifts me up and brings the level of my game up to theirs. Always. It's like a constant upgrade.

I feel like I'm the most well-adjusted character on the show, even though I'm sure the other actors would tell you the same thing about their characters.

There's a constant flow of child actors. It's kind of funny to watch the new crew come through. I think, You poor little things. You're going to have to struggle for a long time.