Ian McShane Quotes

When you are developing a character you have to bring so much of yourself to the role.

I usually can find a way to do a character to make it real and work. But sometimes it's a struggle sustaining that, because there's such a level of personal involvement and personal, physical, and emotional distraughtness.

It is definitely a challenge to play Nathan, but the more different he is from myself, the more interesting the character becomes for me.

I love playing characters, so I'm always telling my agents, 'Don't worry if the character description is something you think I'm not. Let me try to be that person.'

I like playing characters with as many emotions as possible. I'd love to play a really crazy person - someone truly out of her mind.

You have to love the guy that you play, even if you play the villain, you've got to love him.

I love playing really strung out characters, and characters that are really pushed to their limits and losing their mind. I think that's wonderful. To be able to lose it, in many ways, is just great fun to do.

As an actor, I'm constantly striving to find the darkness in the lighter characters and the lightness in the darker characters.

If you can just actually let the character be for a bit, then you get the right sense.

I've had some marvelous parts, but I'm also asked to play characters who are kind of superficial people.

Yeah, I think the common denominator - and this is probably going to sound like Acting 101 - but the common denominator is belief in the character in the moment.

In my career, there have been three things that were challenging: playing gay; playing a Jewish woman; and playing Chekhov. The scariest part was playing Chekhov!

I think it's fair to say I'm attracted to playing characters who are rather intense.

What I love to do requires portraying different characters, and you have to separate your life from the role.

But I'm attracted to roles where I get to really go in and explore a character.

It's absolutely true that it's almost impossible to play a character without having any affection for him.

I love being the character actor. I get to stretch my muscles a little more.

I've played a lot of really smarmy people in film, and it can be real fun, don't get me wrong. But it can be characters I'm not as excited to explore.

As an actor, you don't want to play a one-dimensional character.

And as much as I love the gritty characters, I like to play all sorts of characters. I'm an actor. I love to create.

Basically, I only play one character; I just play him at different volumes.

I like it when actors get an opportunity to chew into something. They love scenes with beginnings, middles, and ends - scenes that give an arc to their characters and allow audiences to get to know these people.

As an actor, I tend to enjoy going to the dark side.

You have to love the characters you play, even if no one else does.

That's what acting is about - for me, at least - tackling different personas and characters.