Alan Rickman Quotes

There is more meat and mileage in complex characters, like 'Running with Scissors.'

I have a very schoolish approach to acting. I like to do my homework, know more about the character, and study it. It's all about the craft.

I like having a plot; I like characters with a reason to get up in the morning.

I know all actors are different, but I've never sat down and asked the writers, 'Where are we headed? Am I good or bad?'

I try to stay away from stuff that's just action, action, action, action, action, and you kind of fast-forward through the dialogue scenes. I'm not interested in doing that. Give me a reason to fight, and I'll go there. But don't just make it, 'You touched my pen! Haaa-yah!' I've done that before.

I've often said the reader knows every bit as much about Thorne as I do. When I created him for 'Sleepyhead,' I was determined he should be a character who would develop, book by book, change and grow as we all do, and who - crucially - would be unpredictable.

To me, the psychology behind the character is critical. So I work very hard to get into the mind of the man that I'm going to be playing, because number one, I want to understand why he's doing what he's doing. It's essential, it's absolutely essential.

I always like to play roles where I either love the character or think that it's a story that I can tell better than anyone else. There are always reasons for me to do whatever I do.

Also, in my acting, I feel very much like a storyteller, exploring the flaws of the characters that I interpret. I look for the imperfections, and I love a character that is just so flawed.

The action genre is not always the most synonymous with character development.

I'm constantly thinking about the role, and there's an infinite amount of questions you can ask yourself about a character to the point that it's hard to find the boundaries of when to not work.

I also try very hard to create characters - both heroes and villains - with psychological depth.

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

I do build my own backstory as an actor. It's important to know where your characters have come from in order to know where they're going - in order to exist in that state of being.

I know, a lot of the films I've done, it's obvious I'm going to beat up six guys and just walk out the door. There's not a lot of motivating factors - it's just action for the sake of action.

I don't approach a role by saying I'll be unsavory or unlikable.

The interesting thing about my character Sylar is that my strengths as an actor seemed to go completely against the shape of a character in the shadow.

I think for everyone it's good to have your own personal work on a character and a film before you even start rehearsing, to have an inner life.

As an actor, you want to be able to move your character forward into new ground, but also it's really interesting to go backwards and unpeel those layers and the interesting elements of what your character is and what informs the decisions that you make so that you can have as much meat to work with.

When I look at a character, whether he's good or bad, one scene or 10 scenes, I just have to find my way in.

If you can find a way your character moves, you know more about your character than you'd ever dream.

A story isn't interesting unless a character has real challenges to deal with.

Alison Carr on 'Homeland.' She was such great character to play, so clever and full of surprises. I was sad to see her go.

With any role I play, I find out what the human problem is first.

I'm interested in telling stories about characters that are interesting and who are challenging in some way, one that will make you think about them afterwards.