I think it would be very difficult to play somebody if they didn't think they had any virtues or redeeming characteristics.

If you put on an Oscar Wilde [play], it will interest those who are interested in Oscar Wilde. But it won't interest anybody else, because they won't get that wit.

Something like 'Alien,' that was not so easy. If there's any genre I wouldn't mind not having to do anymore, it would be science fiction. It's just all to do with the toys, and there's so much hanging around.

This whole theory of alienation that intellectuals have been passing on, really is just to stop a lot of ham acting. If you fill something with a proper emotion, it didn't worry him at all.

It's an immensely competitive business, and I can tell you the older you get, the parts are fewer, and the people who are proven performers are greater.

I've never known what I've wanted to do. I've never planned anything in my life.

I love working with Lars [von Trier]! I've worked with him three times. I did the narration of Dogville and Manderlay.