Malcolm-Jamal Warner Quotes

I'll admit, sometimes I've paid the bills with acting. You know the phrase, 'It's one for the money, two for the showreel.' I don't want that as a director. I don't want to compromise myself. There's a big old wide world out there. I want to explore it.

I've always been really picky about roles and make a point of reminding myself that it's not about the money - because, obviously, there's a lot of money to be made in this business if you're willing to do anything.

I have always chosen roles that I believed in - not ones that I thought might further my career.

I know that the greatest of actresses has about 20 good years of acting in her and that she will go on living for 30 or 40 years as a human being. So, the conclusion I have come to is that I can't make acting my whole life.

I get offered to do stuff where the money's nice but it's not something I want to do - I get offered a lot of commercials too.

I'm not exactly in a position where I get to be super-picky about the roles I get. But I would also never want to be a part of something that I think is poor in taste or doesn't align with what I believe in.

My agent and I are very clear on what kind of roles I'm interested in, and I don't want to perpetuate any stereotypes.

It becomes important to do the right films, than do 10 films in a year. You may do it once, but it'll never happen again.

I don't want to get on the treadmill of earning more money. I'd rather live cheaply and allow myself more freedom. I can honestly say I've never taken a film just for the dough, although I've made some ghastly mistakes.

My conscience won't allow me to do films I thought were bad but were going to make money.

I think if you're talented and not desperate to do any film that comes your way, and are doing justice to all your roles, then you're fine, because you can't predict the rest. You also can't predict the audience's reaction.

I am trying to be true to the work that I want to do and be allowed to make the choices that I want to make.

I want to work in films but without compromising on my dignity.

Money is very important to me, but its source is important too. As of now, I can say that I will never ever do films that demands me to sell my craft.

It is inevitable that popularity will fade. That's why I must always be prepared. I don't want a meteoric rise in popularity. I want to be an actor who can quickly get back on my feet after a fall. If I want to have a long-term career in acting, I must be careful about the choices I make.

I admire actresses who are willing to jettison the easy route toward exposure and commercial success as an actor in favor or a slow burn, choosing projects carefully, and building an artistic practice over time that feels specific to who they are as artists.

Everybody has a priority. Mine is simple and clean acting, and my work, irrespective of the industry I am in, will not cater to anything else.

My agent and manager would sternly tell me exactly the number of projects that we've turned down at this point. But, I think it's really important to do the right thing next.

I'm so jealous of people who in second grade knew what they wanted to do.

I want to continue acting as long as I feel right about it.

I don't have the psychological stamina to last under artistic compromises over a prolonged period of time. I get hostile and vindictive. It wears me down.

It was a life decision, deciding which path to take in my career. I needed time to get together with my family and closest friends.

If somebody else wanted to do a song for McDonald's, that's up to them. I wouldn't do something like that, but whatever.

I didn't want to get typecast doing an item number in 'Corporate,' so I didn't do it then.

I turned down a lot of parts, and I ate a lot of canned tuna for dinner because I was just like, 'No, I don't want to do that; no, that's awful.' But sticking to my guns paid off, and I can look back now and be proud that I refused to take any stereotypical Asian parts.