I feel like I have to be responsible for what I’m participating in or putting out into the world.

I’m not a person who needs to chit-chat between takes by any means.

I grew up in Manhattan, and now I live in Brooklyn.

In life, you have to keep certain parts of yourself in check because you want to be a decent human being. But one of the guilty pleasures of acting is that sometimes you get to...

You look at the part in ’12 Years A Slave,’ you finish that script – I mean, it’s a powerful story. You go, ‘Man, I have to play a bad character in this.’ And then...

The hardest thing about working with your partner is that the work starts to become first.

I think it is important to make sure that I have my real life as well, because Hollywood can certainly seem like an alternate reality sometimes.

I’d always been fascinated by people who allow themselves to be so rude and irritated and foul-mouthed and hostile, but usually you can sense there’s something vulnerable beneath them – a shield they use to...

A lot of people think I must be weird because of the films I’ve done. I get that.

I always ask for more takes. I like doing takes, so I’ll do as many as I can.

Sometimes I think your intellect can get in your way as an actor or an artist. When you come from a world of improv and comedy, you’re able to let it flicker and fall out.

I love cereal. I eat several bowls a day, mostly a few late at night.

I’m very low-maintenance.

I guess sometimes fear is a good thing. It’s a really good motivator.

It’s hard to talk about acting because I don’t think it’s quite as explicit as a lot of people might think. And that’s probably the best thing about it.

I’ve definitely been in ruts, and I think having some kind of perseverance is important.

The idea of writer’s block or not having inspiration is totally terrifying to me.

I think that the Western went away for a while because part of its function was that it used to be America’s action film.