I like taking genres and subverting them. I did that with In the Valley of Elah. I said, Okay, this is just a murder mystery. Relax. And then, two thirds of the way through, I broke every convention of a murder mystery.
The wrong one will start saying things like “withdraw with honor.” We’ve heard phrases like that before, and they led to thousands and thousands of deaths. Democrats always want to look tough...
You don’t do pictures because the audience is ready for them. You do them because there’s something gnawing at you, something inside.
There are very few guys like me. I make a lot of money. I didn’t always...
There’s something that’s so basically corrupt about any system in which a good and fair profit is not enough. There has to be more, every year, every quarter, because your stock price has to rise.
You have to be careful of the advice you take.
I like to really respect the audience and let them come through on answers.
If you’re in a relationship and you try to trust somebody who’s completely untrustworthy, when trust is the basis of any relationship and everyone else says not to trust, is love transformative.
When I started to allow the characters to go where they wanted to go, I just had to follow.
Every 10 years, I know less about love and relationships. The smarter I get, the less I know.
I try not to think of actors as I’m writing because I think you do them a disservice by writing for things they’ve already done.
It turns out that good actors can make anything believable.
I just love actors, and I’ve always loved actors. I empathize with their job. Everyone thinks it’s easy, and it ain’t. To be that vulnerable and brave on camera is tough.
It takes me awhile to find something that I’m passionate about. I’m reading a lot and thinking a lot, and torturing myself a lot because I’m feeling really guilty for not writing something today.
You’d be surprised how many writers, or how many actors, if they miss a paycheck or two, they’ve got nothing. As a writer or an actor you can have four or five jobs in one year and then have none for two years.
I’ve lived in America for many years. I mean, I love being a Canadian, but I truly identify with America. I love America so much.
The hope is what America represents to the world and has always represented – the hope for a better life and a better world. We have a duty to protect and support that hope with not just our words, but with our deeds.
If you believe in someone enough, and you just don’t stop believing in them, mo matter what, no matter how much they push you away, and no matter how often they prove they’re only there to use you.
Walk through Santa Monica and try to find somebody who knows a young man or woman who’s in this war. Here, war is an intellectual concept. If you lose your son or daughter, it’s no longer an intellectual matter.
United States could be a great country. It needs to be a great country. It’s our responsibility as citizens to make that happen, every single one of us.
I just always try to find an interesting story and tell it well. That’s a hard enough thing to do, whether it’s a piece of fiction or it’s a small piece of reality. I just look for good story.