Matt Groening Quotes

When 'Family Guy' started, we wanted to make it more like a sitcom. And there was very little music.

I care more about making sure the story is correct and the characters are behaving in character than I do about the individual jokes.

I want to be an animated character. I'm also doing more writing and directing.

When I got a call to do the voice of Johnny in an episode of 'American Dad' titled 'I Can't Stan You,' it was a great opportunity to be a part of a really funny cutting-edge show on television. I really got into the character, and I was able to do some improvisation, which allowed me to mix in part of my personality into the script.

I would really like to do a really cool one-hour show, maybe on, like, HBO or something like that; or something that I've spent a couple of years developing so it would be exactly the character and exactly in with a huge push behind it; or I would maybe want to do a sitcom; something light and funny.

'Futurama' was a big deal. People had already started to hear about me a little bit here and there, but that was the first series I booked to be a regular on.

When you're a writer on a show, your job is to write in the show runner's voice, really.

'Finding Dory' just stole my heart. Little Dory was the most adorable thing in the entire world, and Ellen DeGeneres killed the game. I liked the flashbacks to the past - it gave you a bit more perspective and appreciation for certain characters.

Giving the voice and expressions to a character is giving it a soul.

The biggest idea of a good time for me is making the Batman videos that we did. That is my ideal day. That is exactly what I want to be doing... I like doing cartoons. I like writing things.

With 'Korra' we've really taken a lot of time to craft it. We're aiming pretty high, and in order to keep up the quality it just takes a lot of time and a lot or work.

To me, truth is the big thing. Constantly you're writing something and you get to a place where your characters could go this way or that and I just can't lie. The characters have gotta be true to themselves.

It was actually after I saw 'Pinocchio' that I thought I might try and work in that industry in some way.

I feel like I don't have much of a preference. With TV, it's just a longer process, so you need to be more sure that you really want to be involved in it for a longer time than you would be with film.

Live action movies are someone else's story. With animation, audiences can't think that. Their guards are down.

Scoring animated films, I have the exact same approach and philosophy as I do for a live action. It's all story- and character-driven. I don't care if it's a mouse or Tom Cruise.

Through eight years, 'How I Met Your Mother' has mastered the art of leading-edge comedy, emotional water-cooler moments, and pop culture catch-phrases.

Jim Henson once allowed me to visit the Muppets on set and spent an entire day showing me how he and the other puppeteers performed Kermit and all the characters! After that, I was lucky enough to work with both George Lucas and Steven Spielberg on many fun animation projects and learned so much from them.

In my opinion, animation will continue to thrive as long as there are children, parents, television, movies and the need to laugh.

Miranda's my character; I created her! But there's a lot of comedy I want to bring to the world that isn't just Miranda.

I've always believed that the script is the boss.

Going from 'Dexter' to 'Powerpuff,' there was a lot of dialogue, there was a lot of... you know, we did action, of course, but I was getting burned out on the words, and both shows had this big, thick black outline.

I would never, for the sake of the story or a twist, have a character do something that they just wouldn't do. I really couldn't. I'd rather miss out on the twist.

On 'Mr. Robot,' because I run the writers' room and know every decision behind every line of dialogue, I'm able to be nimble and adapt with the scripts and the moments. I never have to question what I'm doing as I'm directing the actors or going through the scenes.

For years, I have been inspired by the inventive and masterful storytelling of the 'SAO' franchise. I'm thrilled to get the opportunity to work with such talented partners to bring this cutting-edge yet timeless story to a new format at Skydance.