There were moments on the set when the depth of the cast of 'Dreamgirls' was almost overwhelming to me.

For me, someone like the Eddie Murphy character doesn't live anywhere; he lives on a stage and when he's not on the stage he's on a bus getting to the next stage. You don't really want to see him at home, or all those things you can do in the movie.

We knew that there was a certain kind of interest in Whale among a genre crowd.

I do think that's so much a part of what being a director is - in working with actors - to really try and be sensitive to what each actor needs to get to where he wants to be.

First of all, just knowing people who grew up in the movie business at that time, no one had Mexican maids.

Kinsey would identify himself with Galileo in moments of feelings of persecution.

From its inception by Michael Bennett, 'Dreamgirls' has always been an epic story with an ensemble cast. I didn't change that. The screen version remains, really, a group story.