Rainn Wilson Quotes

I try to do as many different roles as the system will allow me. That's the benefit of not being in a giant blockbuster where you're the lead and you get typecast in that kind of role. I am able to slip in or out of a lot of different parts.

I think I'm fortunate as an actor in that I do seem to get opportunities to play roles that aren't necessarily typical of what I've done before.

I think it would be amazing to be a character actor and still be a lead now and then in movies.

Typecasting is something I have to be careful with, since I play myself on Geek & Sundry so much on my weekly show 'The Flog.' That's why I did 'Dragon Age: Redemption' last year, so I could do something a little more dramatic and hard-edged.

I certainly have never been an actor who can play the Everyman guy - or, I don't tend to get those parts. I've tended to play eccentrics. I've played a lot of villains, of course.

If you're a 'character actor,' you get hired to play baddies a lot.

As soon as I started acting in England, I got unusual roles. Although I'm 6 foot six, and agents might standardly cast me in tough guy roles or the big guy in the back, I've been very blessed to do roles that makes them think twice about how they're gonna cast me.

There's two types of character actors. There's character actors who play all different characters. Or there's actors who always play the same part; they're just a bit funny-looking.

I'm at least getting my foot in the door as far as doing straight dramatic parts, which no one would have ever considered me for in the '80s. I never objected to that because I love doing comedy, and I'm not the kind of actor that insists that unless you're doing a serious dramatic role, you're not acting.

What's great about being a character actor is you know that you can survive forever. It's not about the gloss of your eyebrows.

I like playing a variety of characters. I feel like I've been able to play different kinds of characters - I've done a lot of period pieces - but I've never had to play the same type of character too much.

I think every leading man wants to be a character actor, and every character actor wants to be a leading man.

I have no issue with being a character actor. If you've been around enough that people are able to segregate you into that category, it means you're working. So that's good!

After 'Baby Doll,' I did some Westerns. I would try to do something so far away from 'Baby Doll.'

I don't exactly set out to only play creepy characters, it's just that a lot of those roles come my way.

Every job I've had since 'Smallville' has wanted me to have red hair, so I have to thank 'Smallville' for that. But, just the fact that it was so different was appealing to me. As an actor, you want to be able to play a lot of different things.

When you're a young actor you like to go for characters with a bit of flair, so in many films I ended up playing the weirdos. I can assure you I'm not a psycho or a criminal or a bully.

As far as the lack of hits goes, I think perhaps it's because I've played a lot of different roles and have not created a persona that the public can latch on to. I have played everything from psychopathic killers to romantic leading men, and in picking such diverse roles I have avoided typecasting.

I want to constantly be surprising people with different roles.

I don't mind playing bad guys, but I love having the opportunity to play all different types of characters.

I'm a character actor but unlike a lot of character actors, I don't look radically different from film to film and there was a bunch of them at once.

People always think that because of 'Dr. Quinn' that I just play nice family stuff. But the truth of the matter is that 'East of Eden' was a very successful thing for me in the past. I've played a lot of very evil people in my time.

I played a real nasty little girl but most of the roles I had up until then were very sweet and very nice.

I have about as much control over how I look as the guy who's short and looks more like a character actor - we both have the same drive to be actors and we both have the same drive to assume these different characters, it's just harder for me to get the chance because they look at me and say, 'Oh, he's this type,' and they stamp me.

I usually do get to play the very sweet, charming roles... but I'm not an obvious kind of villain.