It didn't seem to have relevance, except in Central America or South America, countries where the church was connected to the fight of the people for economic justice. That's why it was so interesting to find myself back with Sister Helen [in Dead Man Walking], this new breed of nuns who were making a difference in the community.

Somebody can be the captain of the ship, which allows you to make big mistakes.

That's the thing about independently minded children. You bring them up teaching them to question authority, and you forget that the very first authority they question is you.

To become a lapsed Catholic, first go to a Catholic university.

If Wes Anderson has a very strong cast, he can direct the minutia of that story and still manage to have something that lives and breathes.

Acting is kind of a forced compassion, where you learn that given certain circumstances, you can feel and do things that you never thought yourself capable of. And so it stops you from being super-judgmental.

I've just come back from Vegas, and I was in on the caucus process. It's insane. What a mess. And also with these particular candidates who are running, so many times I said, "I just wish Kurt Vonnegut were alive." This is like something he would be writing. This is just crazy stuff. I would love to hear his take on it.