Casting Considerations Quotes

I don't want to be pretentious about, "yes, I need to move in to the more dramatic roles and express myself and prove to everyone that I'm capable of doing it," it really isn't that, I think that's a bad reason to choose roles. It's more like, who would I be working with and would they be fun to do and entertaining to watch, is it an interesting story or character.

I have always accepted films based on what my role is. Of course, I do look at who is playing the lead opposite me, the producer and the director.

I prepare for auditions differently depending on what it is - what the material is, what the project is, who I'm reading for.

I don't reflect on sort of the age of the roles that I get. It's usually just what plays into what's believable - 'Am I believable at this age?'

I think back at the time, if it had been 1988, I would have thought Michael and Sarah probably would have been cast but I don't think, I think it's much better that the girl is younger and if Sarah would have been 26 or 27 then.

Granted, it's not easy to be a super-tall woman in Hollywood. But there are times when it works in my favour. In 'The Night Manager,' for example, both of my co-stars, Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston, are also well over 6 ft. and it was lovely to look a co-star in the eye and not have them standing on an apple box!

In the horror genre, unfortunately you sometimes have the studio tell you, "No, go with more unknown people because it's a scary movie," and I disagree.

I just never want to be in this situation where I get to set and they're like, 'We rewrote this scene, you're now naked.' I need a little prep work.

The quality of writing attracts me to films, also who the other actors are, who the director is, where it's being shot. Any or all of those things. But if the writing is really appalling, then the money had better be really good. Sometimes you say yes to something you wouldn't always do because you need the money.

I have a certain energy on screen, and it's either needed or it's definitely not needed. I know that I can stick out like a sore thumb, and there are some women I'm not ready to play.

Sometimes it's the lead, but there are not always leads out there, so then it's an interesting supporting character, or there's a lot of dough, although that happens less and less. Let's have a good laugh about that one.

I think you're just always trying to find really great, interesting female roles. That's the thing for me. You do have to think about what you're signing up for.

Casting is really a black art. It's a huge part of directing and it's the most invisible. It's one that people don't really think about or talk about. But you can really destroy your movie by casting it badly before you've shot a foot of film. And yet there are no guidebooks for it, there's no rule book to tell you how to do it. It's all your own experience and your own sensibility and your own intuition.