I think it kind of took being a character actor to kind of now enter into leading ladies.

And I have a really great agent and I know it's almost an oxymoron to say you have a smart agent. But she is and she has a beautiful aesthetic and she has guided me.

New Orleans. Born and raised. I lived there until I was 19.

Talent is a very potent aphrodisiac. When someone is incredibly gifted, I find them incredibly sexy.

I always try to approach character first and foremost viscerally.

If my gravy train stops at SAG, honey, it's been a great ride.

The odds are not in your favor the older you get, especially if you're a woman in this business.

I think it's always harder in a film to convey intimacy.

I'm really a director's actor. I rely heavily on a director.

See, the SAG awards caught me totally by surprise.

But no, had I been successful in my 20s I would have been just fine. But it is nice to defy the odds.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki were atomized at a time when the Japanese were suing desperately for peace.

You can sway a thousand men by appealing to their prejudices quicker than you can convince one man by logic.

I've always believed that success for anyone is all about drive, dedication, and desire, but for me, it's also been about confidence and faith.

Story involves action. Action towards an end not to be foreseen (by the reader) but also towards an end which, having been reached, must be seen to have been from the start inevitable.

You should not bear insults.

The team you build is the company you build.

If you don't get spending under control, eventually you're going to have a big tax increase.

Speeches and me don't get along sometimes. It is kind of like putting a tie too tight on my neck. I'm going to do whatever feels right.

Love is the ability to discover similarities in the dis-similar. The audience has a right not to be fooled - even if it insists on being fooled.

Enjoy life, it has an expiration date