I’m trying to work only with established, respected directors. I took a lot of bad scripts and worked for a lot of lazy directors, and it was discouraging to go to the screenings and see that the director had added nothing, the editor had added nothing, there was nothing to see.
I’ve had such a great time, I’d like to come back as me – and do it all over again.
My circle of friends are not actors at all. None of them are actors, really, because they’re are not available. They’re always off somewhere.
I never bring a role home with me. The moment they say, ‘It’s a wrap,’ it’s gone completely. I’m a totally ruthless professional, and life is my family, not my work.
For me, the performance was always playing different people. And so when I got older, was no longer the romantic leading movie star, it became more and more interesting for me, the characters I played, you know?
I was a repertory actor, which meant that I did a play every week. I was a different character every week; for a year, I was doing 40 or 50 characters.
Since I was 19, I’ve had the most fun possible every single day, even when I had a rough life. It was the army which taught me about life, and the theater which taught me how good it could be.
In my early days, I didn’t know what a good film or a bad film was, and I was trying to make some money. As it happens I was lucky. I made some good films.
A lot of people said, Who do you think you are? I told them I know exactly who I am and I’ll tell you exactly where I’m going.
By the time the Oscars are on I’ll be seventy. How many more chances am I going to have to get nominated for an Oscar?
You don’t sacrifice your individuality; you sacrifice a lot of freedom.
God willing, even I might scrape a nomination.
I can never be the hero now. You have to be young and all that stuff. I used to be the hero.
I learned about life before I went into the theater, which is why I’ve been so happy. I was a soldier.
I didn’t know what I knew. I wasn’t aware of what I knew.
I don’t have to work. I suppose I should retire. But I enjoy working.
I don’t like getting up early in the morning and learning all that stuff. I work with offers that I can’t refuse.
I don’t see myself as anything. I just wander around getting on with my life.
I never listened to the people who said I should give it up, which is the main advice I got.
I’ve made the transition from star to character actor and I’m thoroughly enjoying it.