Sequels are not done for the audience or cinema or the filmmakers. It's for the distributor. The film becomes a brand.

That's part of the requirement for me to be an artist is that you're trying to share your personal existence with others and trying to illuminate modern life, trying to understand life.

The very earliest people who made film were magicians.

People feel the worst film I made was 'Jack.' But to this day, when I get checks from old movies I've made, 'Jack' is one of the biggest ones. No one knows that. If people hate the movie, they hate the movie. I just wanted to work with Robin Williams.

Usually, the stuff that's your best idea or work is going to be attacked the most.

It's ironic that at age 32, at probably the greatest moment of my career, with The Godfather having such an enormous success, I wasn't even aware of it, because I was somewhere else under the deadline again.

I wanted to write and direct movies and not be forced to adapt them from a bestselling book.