Sam Rockwell Quotes

I think any good actor is an anarchist. They have to be.

It's hard to not get typed in Hollywood. They really want to type you. I'm trying to avoid that, because I want to do a lot of things. I know what I'm capable of. I forgive them because they don't know. They haven't seen me play Hamlet. They're not going to cast me as an English aristocrat. I'm going to have to prove that on my own. That's okay. That's what you have to fight for if you want to be an artist.

I think people are happier when they have structure, you know? You realize that as you get older. You have to have rituals and structure.

Good acting is good acting, however you learn it. Some people who haven't studied are amazing. Some people like Leonardo DiCaprio are naturally gifted - he's learned technique by working with people early on.

I have memories of films that nobody ever saw, that I was very proud of, and those are still great memories.

I copied everything I did in Galaxy Quest from Bill Paxton in Aliens, I owe him some credit.

I had those kind of parents where I watched all of these very sophisticated movies: 'Five Easy Pieces', 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.'

My parents were both actors my dad sort of quite early on. My mother acted for a while, and now she's a painter.

In theatre you can't ad lib, so you want to pick really good material, like David Mamet or Shakespeare or whatever. You want to be really careful about what you do. But in the movies, you do have more wiggle-room. You do have more opportunities to improvise. It's fun to improvise, but I still think it's better to have a great script.

An editor is like a painter. There is a magic in that.

You want to make a little money, and sometimes you want to play some really great parts. Sometimes they don't always coincide, or co-exist. Sometimes you've got to do good parts for no money and... You know, I sometimes can't do movies just for the money. I really can't. I mean, I've tried. Believe me, I'd love to just take the money and run. That might just be part of the equation, but there has to be something there. You have to be somewhat creatively satisfied.

I have a constant sort of melancholy approach to acting that fuels me. I want to do everything.

I've done so many independents for so many years. Leads that nobody's seen.

I sometimes can't do movies just for the money. I really can't. I mean, I've tried. Believe me, I'd love to just take the money and run.

You hit 41 and you don't burn calories like you used to.

I did some martial arts training for 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,' since the character was an assassin.

I remember being very influenced by 'Taxi Driver', and also Tommy Lee Jones in 'Coal Miner's Daughter' a little bit.

I was certainly naïve about the judicial system in America. There's a lot of people who are in prison who are innocent. The system is very flawed.

I had a great time with John Duigan he's pretty amazing.

I'm not going to just do a dumb zombie movie, although I love zombie movies.