Lee Daniels Quotes

On film sets, people get put down in public a lot.

The thing I find about the movie industry is that 99 percent of the people are absolute scum. They're horrible people, they really are. Very nasty killer rabbits who hate movies. But the other 1 percent are really the greatest, most wonderful people in the world.

The police came to me to say I had death threats and that I had to be careful!

I'm a little girl; no one wants to beat up on me.

A lot of directors don't really like actors.

They've been bashing me since I started making films.

Nobody is taking my lunch money.

My mum wouldn't let me go outside. Coming back from school, the gang men sometimes would say things, but I would walk by, never answer, and my mum would go tell them leave me alone.

Pakistan is my home; I don't want to feel harassed in my own home.

The best and most talented directors - and I think it goes for people too - are the most confident in giving room to their actors and trusting them.

I understand the formula that producers hire directors and directors are hired to direct and actors are hired to act. I don't have any conflict with any directors because I know they're the boss.

I always found something strangely paternal about the director-actor relationship. Actors want so much approval.

If you want to protect yourself as an actor, always work with good people

I find that the vast majority of people who are judging are just fearful or insecure.

Every single time when you act in a film, and there's a different director, which of course as actors we're used to experiencing that's what we do, it's a different experience.

There are some people who have a low tolerance for criticism. I'm not one of those people.

You have to have a thick enough skin to cope with the criticism. I'm very self-critical and I have a lot of friends that I trust who are film directors and writers and people in my profession.

There's no director or actor that I want to work with more than anyone else, other then maybe Johnny Depp, who I really would love to work with. I don't view any directors or actors above regular people, so I'm just happy to work with anyone, as long as they have talent.

You look at people like Gena Rowlands, but she had [John] Cassavetes to write these amazing roles for her.

What people are afraid of isn't failure. It's blame. Criticism.

There was a time in South Africa that people would put flaming tires around peoples' necks if they dis-sented. And in some ways the fear is that you will be necklaced here, you will have a flaming tire of lack of patriotism put around your neck. Now it is that fear that keeps journalists from asking the toughest of the tough questions... And again, I am humbled to say, I do not except myself from this criticism.

I'm sure there are directors who don't like to work with actors and don't know how to be sensitive to actors.

When I met Quentin [Tarantino], he told me what every actor wishes from any director. He said, "I've been through a Demián Bichir marathon. I've watched everything you've done." Most of the time, they don't even know what you've done.

Sometimes it's hard to hear criticism, or "maybe let's try a different way." People's feelings get hurt.

What I like about being an actress is that it keeps you feminine. Being a director and producer makes you manly and very masculine and I don't like that quality in a woman. But I'll do it when the film is very close to me.