Phil Hartman Quotes

I think you can have a whole terrific, smart career as a second and third banana and work more and have much less risk than the lead guy. But I like being the lead guy.

I like being the lead but I like being in an ensemble. There are different challenges and dilemmas with both. If you're carrying a film, there's a certain weight, but there are a lot of scenes to explore the character. When you're in an ensemble, you have to convey the entire character in a limited number of scenes.

Like any creative human being, I would like a bit more control so that it would be a little easier for me when the director says, 'One tear, right now,' that one tear would pop out.

I think any actor in their right mind is afraid of getting pigeonholed.

Most people want to become movie stars and I just want to be in the business. I already was a star. If I get the part of a lifetime and it blows up, then that's wonderful. But if the acting doesn't work, fine. I'll just be a producer. And if the producing doesn't work, fine. I've got a lot of other stuff.

'Glee Project' and 'Glee' have the same spirit, but they're both harder in their own ways. With 'Glee Project,' there's more pressure because you're being judged in everything you do. When you film 'Glee,' you go to the studio and have an off day, and it's OK - you're still going to be there; you take as many chances as you need.

'Breaking Bad' has definitely opened many, many doors for me.

Of course, I'm not often the top dog, but sometimes it's better not to be top dog, because you last longer. If a movie or play flops, you always blame the lead. They say, 'He couldn't carry it.' They always blame him. But they rarely blame the second or third banana.

There are two sides to being pigeonholed. There's, 'Oh, no, I'm going to be Chandler for the rest of my life,' but there's also the fact that getting to play Chandler opened up doors to me. It's now my job to find things that shake it up a little bit.

I think you just have to take everything that happens on a TV show with a grain of salt. You sign up for a show for six years having zero idea where they're going to go with the character, so you just have to get on the ride of the show and go with wherever they take you.

Yes, I would love to play one of the leads in one these movies and have all those challenges and deal with all those complications, but the business being what it is, there is a slot for me in these kinds of films, so I enjoy them, and I enjoy the people that I work with.

The goal for me is always to have the opportunity to work in different genres. This is a great and exciting time in my career, where I can have the opportunity to work in different genres, and also I recognize there's not a lot of actors who have that opportunity and I'm grateful for it.

I think when you're doing a lead role, there is so much more pressure. If you fail, not only do you fail, but everybody else fails, too. As opposed to when it's a supporting role and it's only you that sucked.

I would hate to be thrust into the middle of a big film and not deliver. There's young actors and they're put into these central roles and they're commanding armies - but they can't quite pull it off. I'd much rather do it in small steps and build it from there.

The only really conscious decision I made was to cast my net wide and if the work was good, to do it.

We know, in history, people are unable to put different elements together and create gold, yet it's what you're asking actors to do every day. You're asking them to relax enough with the confines and restrictions of the lights and the cameras, and you gotta hit this mark, to relax enough to create what seems wonderful and beautiful.

'The Fosters' is such a fun show to shoot, and I always look forward to getting the new script because we keep pushing the boundaries.

I got lucky with 'The Girlfriend Experience' in the sense that it was one season and was meant to be that way. When I signed on, they told me that every season is going to be a different girl. I was like, 'Sweet. If I hate it, then I'm out.'

I essentially have always directed everything on my TV show without using that title; I edited and wrote all my stuff.

People have certain expectations from me, and I want to do different characters.

Getting a casting means that a lot of people have put a lot of faith in you and your abilities, and you constantly think 'I hope I don't let them down.'

With 'American Idol,' you are on your toes a lot. People don't realize the amount of work.

Television is a good training ground for aspiring stars. You can experiment and get away, imbibing the positive and viable aspects. Whereas, in cinema, the stakes are high. If something goes wrong, the film falls flat.

When television emerged, it opened up many avenues for actors like me, but after a point, it also became very limiting.

The best deal about being a producer is that unlike a director who has to go on the sets even if he doesn't get along with the actor, the producer has the liberty to remain behind the scenes.