In my career, my movies tend to polarize critics.
If what I think is God should come down today and says "I'm God, or the thing you call God, and you're never going to do any more movies. You're never going to do television. You're never going to do theater again in your life," I would just say "What are we doing? What is the next step?" That's how I try to approach it.
Movies are a world of Fragments.
Los Angeles people are incapable of passively mainlining TV and movies. Here you have to read who produced or directed every episode, who wrote it, who had guests shots and whether you know them personally and if they like you. You have to figure out who everybody's agent is and whether yours is better. You not only know but deeply care about the difference between such job titles as Producer, Supervising Producer, and Executive Story Editor. . . . So while the rest of the country is lying stupid in a media-induced coma, people in L. A. are in constant withdrawal.
People look at technology as sometimes an end to things, and it isn't an end in certain cases. In the movie business, the act of creating in the art form of movies, the craft of movies is completely technical, and that's all it is.
I love bad movies, whereas going to the theater for me is a painful experience. I think it's really hard to sit and watch actors do something live and have it not go well.
The great exception to that, of course, is Johnny Depp, who is absolutely the ultimate character actor. Johnny Depp is the future of the character actor and thanks to his success maybe we will see the return of an era when my sort of actor is back in vogue. It's not in vogue for me to be in Hollywood movies as lots of different people.
Clearly, audiences are very accepting of A-list talent both giving them what they want - Tom Hanks is the most classic example - and then going on, from time to time, to do things that are unexpected. That's part of what makes people want to go to the movies and not just sit home.
As a kid growing up in a small town in Washington State, my only exposure to New York City was through movies. The town with its towering skyscrapers, fascinating people and teeming energy absolutely captivated me.
Making movies is just like betting on horses at the racetrack.
I think we're conditioned by watching movies.
Movies are movies, and I don't think any of them are going to hurt the moral fiber of America and all that nonsense.
I'm not sure anybody's ready to see me in a drama. And loving movies so much, I've seen a lot of comics try to make that transition too fast, and it can be detrimental. And I don't think I've had as much success as I need in the comedy genre to open up those opportunities.
You asked me my favorite question: What happened and what did you learn from being under contract to MGM? And the answer is I know how to make movies. I understand how to do that. I've been doing that my whole life. It's just easier to raise the money yourself and then hire yourself. It's possible if you reduce your own budget a little.
And who cares, five years down the road, what most movies made or didn't make? If it's good, it stands up.
I took a bunch of pictures. You can see 'em on my MySpace page, along with my favorite songs and movies and things that other people have created but that I use to express my individualism.
Other people have worked with big studios and maintained control over their movies. I see no reason why it wouldn't work for me.
Movies will make you famous; Television will make you rich; But theatre will make you good.
Some of my favorite all-time movies - Wong Kar-wai is just amazing. In the Mood for Love is probably my favorite film ever. Those lyrical montages are so stunning.
Like when you go to a magic show and you know how they do the illusions. That's how I am when I watch any movies where they have people flying through the air.