I think it's just growth, and development, timing. I've been fortunate to be around for a long time. Allowed me to get better as an actor. Allowed me to play better roles.

It's hard when you see a scene where it's raining, and we have the rain machine, and you see it for 5 minutes, but that scene takes all day to shoot, and you do it with rain, and the dry off, and go back and do it again.

To me the work is so much more interesting, the parts that don't require you just to take your shirt off.

I think there's a bit of me in every character. Basically it just depends on what happens with the character.

California is like the Mecca of the film industry. Everyone's seen California.

I think that Mos Def is the best actor, but when you talk about rappers in films, I don't really think the quality of the acting is most important because most rappers are put in movies because of the personality and people want to see that.

Showtime has given new, young filmmakers - black, white, across the board - an opportunity to make films, as well as actors who want to cross over into directing.