Michael Sheen Quotes

My rule of thumb is that I want to do things I'd like to go and see myself.

The more you think that you are watching a show about sex, the more you ultimately are watching a show about the challenges of just connecting with human beings and being intimate.

Americans are much more open than people in Britain.

A lot of the times when I've auditioned for parts in America, the answer is, 'Sorry, we need a bigger name.'

For a culture that has such a problem with death, we seem to deal with it in a quite bizarre way. We see people shot, killed and blown up, and we find it funny and sexy and all those things. But, the reality of it is that every day people die, and people are really sad and they grieve and they go through a really difficult process with it.

As a general thing, I've always been drawn to characters who appear to be one thing on the surface, but are actually something else underneath.

Change the scheme! Alter the mood! Electrify the boys and girls, if you'd be so kind.

In terms of how prudish Americans were in the '40s and '50s, I have absolutely no idea. I do know about the character that I play. And I don't think it's about being prudish. I think it's about trying to balance a sense of control in this man's life.

I find increasingly that the more extreme are the things going on in your life, the more cultural reference points fail you. More mythical reference points actually help, and you realize that's what myths are for. It's for human beings to process their experience in extremis.

I can be a lazy dresser.

When I was at drama school, I wanted to change the world, and thought I had some great wisdom to impart to people about humanity. Now that I'm older, I know enough to realise that I know nothing at all.

I have a daughter, and fairies meant a lot to her growing up.

My chief gifts are - naturally good at all sports with a raw talent for pretty much everything, which if nurtured could develop into improper talent.

I live a very Kenneth Williams-like existence.

My experience of working on this show, even though there is so much about sex and sexuality, and we find out a lot of facts and statistics that are very interesting, in their own right, I found that I started talking about relationships more, and the emotions, the difficulties and the challenges. So, I became far more open about that, which I think is probably an indication with the show itself.

Nothing can be left until the last minute, so that everyone knows exactly where they are. Everyone is comfortable and everyone feels safe because we want people to be able to keep coming into this show and taking those risks. There are a lot of risks in this show, not just nudity, but emotional risks. We want the best actors to feel comfortable about coming in and exploring this subject matter with us.

A parent can seem very kind and gentle, but as any child knows, as soon as that parent gets stressed, they can suddenly turn and get a bit angry.

I suppose I'm something of an eccentric dresser.

I would like to be taller, thinner and more rakish looking.

So, if they're coming in and having to do scenes that involve nudity or sexuality, in some way, the utmost important thing is that everyone feels comfortable and safe. If there's any gray area, that's going to be a problem.

I don't want to do something that I've done before; I can't see the point of it.

For me, what makes life enjoyable is having a shared culture and shared references.

When you come to actually act, it's a game. It may be a very serious game, but it's still a game. If you lose that sense of play, the work suffers.

I remember someone said to me, "Never stand up when you can sit down, never sit down when you can lie down, never lie down when you can be asleep." Those are bits of advice that I haven't taken, really. I've done the opposite of them, but they have stayed with me.

No matter how difficult things are, and no matter how much grief and loss there is, you can turn it into something positive.

I think the best acting is when you allow yourself to be kind of vulnerable in the moment.

We see death constantly on film.

While I enjoy spending time in L.A., Britain is my home.