I grew up in the Bronx, but in Riverdale - not exactly an area of New York that's known for being rough and tumble.

I so never went through a bad-girl period.

Over time as an actor, your life with a project can be so short lived because you come on, you do it, and then you're done. You have no control, no say, and all of a sudden there's all of this distance between the work you've put into something and the product as you see it appear on-screen.

For me to get to work with a writer-director over time in developing a project - my investment feels much more profound. I know that whatever is on the other end I'm going to feel that much closer to.

As a theater actor I always wondered, 'Is there a place for me in Hollywood?

Cate Blanchett is somebody who I could watch do anything. I love what an extraordinary chameleon she can be. There's something about the way she bends and transforms that feels otherworldly to me.

I want to do more independent film. I'm blessed to be working on really quality episodic television, which to me actually feels like a sort of 13-hour film.