Mekhi Phifer Quotes

In a TV show, you are restricted to a lot of things. On television, you can't put the content you can put on web series and on the channels digitally.

There are things I'm doing with 'The After' that would've never flown on 'The X-Files' and on network television, so it's more permissive. That's not to say that you want to abuse that. I think that a show like 'The X-Files' actually worked better as a network show with the restraints put on it, the censorship that was applied.

In terms of language, yeah we get bleeped and blurred and things, but in terms of content, I would probably say we're getting away with more here than we could get away with in Britain. And that surprised us so much!

There are obviously legal restrictions on what you can do on TV in the States, as there are everywhere.

In the United States, viewers don't get to see a lot of things we can show in other countries. We didn't get to show our naked Twister game from Wild On Jamaica, but we definitely filmed it.

A film has to maintain a certain decorum in order to be broadcast to a vast audience.

In China, the rules of the market are not always that transparent. So it's very hard. Also, the national TV networks are all owned by the government, so our shows are subject to censorship by the networks. Every now and then, we are told that certain subjects cannot be talked about. There are frustrations.

ABC is owned by Disney, so it's a little more conservative than Adult Swim. Polar opposites.

The censorship is such on television in the U.S. that films like mine don't stand a chance.

I don't think there's one thing I've ever said on the radio that would have been found indecent or obscene.

They're pretty particular about what they show. They certainly edit the scripts and have conversations with the writers about what they are and aren't willing to portray. But the writers and the network are pretty much on the same page.

It was like fighting with the MPAA... to me it was like this is an R easy... but it was NC 17 over and over and even with this cut they were like, you are right on the edge buddy, one more thing and it's NC-17.

With a lot of those 'S.N.L.' shorts, we would do them just as we wanted to do them and then beep out the bad words. Since it was late night T.V., they let us get away with a lot.

They'll say, That's funny, but you can't do that on TV.

Write on any subject you choose. There are no taboos except what is prohibited by law and press ethics.

Television should be regulated like a toaster.

When I first started, you couldn't mention divorce or death. You couldn't show smelly socks. You couldn't show a snake. They took a skunk out of my strip one time.

TV isn't a wide medium when it comes to boldness on the small screen because of the audience. It reaches out to the audience but keeping the traditions intact.

It is inconceivable that CNN's morning show or any other show could be anything but horribly boring. Why? Because they won't let anyone take risks.

Creative freedom on television is very limited and I get bored very easily.

I think 'The Simpsons' is in the right time slot because it's not a show for kids. It's too vulgar. And 'Ren and Stimpy' is worse. We would never do anything like that.

On network, you have limitations for how raunchy it can get and how violent it can get.

That's what's nice about being on Comedy Central. You can't show your boobs even if you wanted to.

In TV today, you can say I pricked my finger, but you can't say it the other way around.

Obviously, there's a million things we're allowed to say on late-night cable that you're not allowed to say on a prime time broadcast.