Tom Ellis Quotes

Even if the character is something that seems ridiculous on paper, there's a human element to everything. Otherwise, we don't connect with it.

Very often the characters people respond to best have little parts of reality they can relate to.

In a film, if you can capture what's going on underneath, you can begin to make a connection between the character and the people watching it.

Part of the success of the show is that the audience sees themselves in the characters, becomes the characters. The more they inhabit the characters, the more they see.

Perfect heroes are cool, but no one can really empathize or identify with them.

I chose to present myself as one who comes from among the people, and I can be touched by their pain because I have my own.

I want to be relatable. I want to be the guy that people root for.

I've got a theory with each character I play. Regardless of the actions that they do, I, as Jake, have to like these people. And I have to say, 'I wouldn't mind hanging out with this guy for an hour and a half.'

Your job as an actor, I guess, is just to make people relate to the character.

I loved the challenge of being able to take a character who could be thrown away as 'crazy' and making her identifiable to the audience - also, to give her a vulnerability that people would cheer for.

With every character, the first thing I want to feel is empathy.

I feel such a connection to 'Violet.'

You have to present characters an audience can relate to.

People relate to my characters and see me in a different way. They identify with me and remember the nuances of my characters.

If people don't connect to Eric Carter's struggles, I'm sure they'll find a character in this series to connect to. That's ultimately what it's about for me.

When people watch my movies and web series, I want them to either see themselves in those characters or something they can relate to.

I think when people hear your music, sometimes they get deeply attached to it and think they know something about you, that you're kindred spirits or something.

I don't try to intellectualize characters too much. But I always think of the audience. I always make sure that my characters are likeable.

I think one of my big skills is making unlikable characters likable or real in some way. No matter how hateful people are, there's always something vulnerable about them, or something that you can understand or relate to. I think that's my job as an actress - to find those.

Comedy and drama are different sides of the same coin. And the thing about comedy and drama is about likability. It's about character first. It's about story. And for me, it's about empathy, and I think the realer someone is, the further you can go either way with them.

You have to have sympathy for the villain. Even the most disgusting ones, you have to find something to connect with. I try to put as much of myself in every single character that I play.

I read to see myself in other people's lives.

A lot of people have told me, you know, that what I've written about, they identify with strongly.

Until a character becomes a personality it cannot be believed. Without personality, the character may do funny or interesting things, but unless people are able to identify themselves with the character, its actions will seem unreal. And without personality, a story cannot ring true to the audience.

I try to find something in everyone that I play - even the most heinous ones. You have to find something that is real and vulnerable about everything that you play.