John Foster Quotes

I have never played a role in which someone's dark side shouldn't be explored.

The interesting part of the process is developing the character, you know, why did he become that? Why is the guy a murderer, or why is this guy a pervert, or whatever he is. So that's the fun part for me to delve into the abyss.

Loki in 'Thor' is the most incredible springboard into a sort of excavation of the darker aspects of human nature. So that was thrilling, coming back knowing that I'd built the boat and now I could set sail into choppier waters.

For each character, I try to understand what is driving them.

The horror genre gets you in touch with our primal instincts as a people more than any other genre I can think of. It gives you this chance to sort of reflect on who we are and look at the sort of uglier side that we don't always look at, and have fun with that very thing.

I think Shakespeare had a lot to contribute with his understanding of the human condition.

If the novelist shares his or her problems with the characters, he or she is able to study his personal unconscious.

A novel can grant humanity even to those who act inhumanely, and by making men and women of monsters, it can offer not only a ground-level view of a particular conflict, but a descent into the substratum of human nature capable of the incomprehensible.

To me, the psychology behind the character is critical. So I work very hard to get into the mind of the man that I'm going to be playing, because number one, I want to understand why he's doing what he's doing. It's essential, it's absolutely essential.

Those things interest me a lot in songwriting - the human nature of how people think, and the muck that we wind up in.

I'm interested in the psychological exploration of human nature, and it just happens to come in the form of film-making.

Macbeth was the first play I ever read.

I think we all have a kind of dark side, and that's what keeps life - and characters - interesting. That's one of the things that I'm drawn to write about again and again, the secrets we keep and how they shape us.

I like playing characters with internal problems.

I also try very hard to create characters - both heroes and villains - with psychological depth.

Shakespeare's stories are still very strong. He structured fantastic stories about things that were fundamental to the human being and psyche.

There's a story in 'Kabu Kabu' called 'Bakasi Man' where I got to explore the mind of a 'bad man.' It was fun.

I have not thought too much about the psychology or life of the character Jonas in some time.

I suppose one of the things that interest me about acting is unpicking what makes people tick and why they do what they do and what it means to be human.

Less base the fear of death than fear of life.

The movies I like to make are very rich and full of passion. Some people see me as an action director, but action is not the only thing in my movies. I always like to show human nature - something deep inside the heart.

Identity is part of drama to me. Who am I, why am I behaving this way, and am I aware of it?

Some mystery should be left in the revelation of character in a play, just as a great deal of mystery is always left in the revelation of character in life, even in one's own character to himself.

I've never loved a character as much as I do Niska. The way she's been written is so complex, with huge amounts of light and dark. It's a really satisfying challenge to play someone who is superhuman in their intelligence and physical ability but completely naive when it comes to certain aspects of life.

I think the challenge for me in this role is going to be, is there any heart in Negan? For me, I look at that as a challenge as an actor, and that's the kind of thing that I embrace and really look forward to.