Brendan Gleeson Quotes

I'd rather have a small part in a good film with good people than play the lead in something I don't really care for.

I always used to say, as a director, that I could make anybody good in a movie if you found the right part. It all comes down to casting.

I mark a script like an exam, and I try not to do anything under 50 per cent. Similarly with the part. And also film is a peculiar thing, parts don't necessarily read in script form anything like as well as they can do when it comes to materialising.

The first thing I ask when I'm offered a part is, Who's the director? which is something they never understand in Los Angeles.

If a script is good, you are 10 steps into the part just reading it. But my choices are not all down to my taste. It is about people you have worked with before.

If I had to choose criteria, for me, it's about first the director. I want to be a part of something that's good and intellectually challenging. After the director it's the character and the story. That's the deal for me.

I think what makes a good actor's director is the same thing that makes a good director. Acting is just one of the trades necessary to make a movie.

You have the massive world that was created by Marvel, and then you have these very intimate actors around you. There was as much character work on this as there would be on a little independent film. So, I felt very fortunate in that sense.

It would drive me crazy if I picked roles with the goal of being a leading man. You never know what you're getting into when you sign onto a project, and more times than not, the characters that are close to the leading man are more interesting and more fun to play.

I've always done character roles and tons of movies as the so-called star, but I always felt I was one of the team.

Certain scripts require an ensemble cast. I'm absolutely fine with that. I will not deprive myself of the chance to be part of a good film because of insecurities or fear of losing my market. But my role must be well-defined.

I've always loved the collaborative side of filmmaking, and there's a lot of things I can do in the acting side of things in terms of the creating of action sequences, and coming up with ways of doing things with a stunt coordinator.

I don't plan or schedule my career thinking first I will play a common man, then a police officer, then a superhero. I love good scripts, and I don't care if I play the main part in it or not. I want to be a part of good films. That's my dream... 'Jacobinte Swargarajyam' was that film for me.

You can be the lead in a movie just for the sake of being a lead in a movie, or you can just be in a good movie.

They wanted me to do Scream 2, and I hate talking about movies I turned down, because it sounds judgmental. There's nothing wrong with horror movies. I enjoy watching them. The main reason I turn a part down is if I think I won't be good.

The least consideration of any film I've ever worked on is who is right for it.

As an actor, my main focus is finding good writing and attacking a good role.

I think if you do something effectively whether you're the lover or the comic or the action guy or the villain like I play; movies are very expensive to make. Chances are you'll get asked to play that part again.

I've had to make the transition from sweeping in for 15 minutes, doing my stuff and clearing out, to carrying a movie for the duration - in a dress.

There's never been a mathematical equation that says a good experience making a movie equates to a good movie, or a bad experience on a set is going to lead to a bad movie.

I think the most important thing for an actor is reading the script and trying to figure out if you can play that character well. The last thing on my mind is if the director made good movies previously. It's not my job to know if that director's last movie was any good - it's my job to know if I can play the role.

If I'm going to act in someone's movie, I want the movie to be interesting and be able to get a couple of solid doubles.

There are definitely reasons to do certain things, but I like to stick to good director, good actor, good script.

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

It's a whole other way of working when you work in films: You know exactly the arc of your character.