What you want, as an actor, is a great leader. I can't bear it when I work with a director who is wishy-washy and says, "What did you think?"

My mum put me in drama classes when I was about 14. I'd been going on about it for some time, so maybe it was a way to shut me up.

I have a bit of a frustrated dancer in me.

Directors are our teachers, and I'm always craving to work with a great director. They're pretty much the first thing that interests me about a project. Let's put it this way: It'll take me a lot longer to read a script if there's no director attached.

Directors are our teachers, and I'm always craving to work with a great director. They're pretty much the first thing that interests me about a project.

I think whether you've got children or not you're just more aware of others as you get out of your 20s.

I got knockback after knockback at auditions. Just before ‘Mulholland Dr.’ my agent told me I was so intense I was freaking people out. She told me I was a brilliant actor but the feedback was that I made people feel uncomfortable because I was so nervous and intense. I just sat there and blubbed. My mum was staying in LA at the time and I went to her and said: ‘I just can’t do this. I’m not cut out for it.’ She just said: ‘Don’t believe a word people say about you. Forget them.’