Dakota Fanning on Outgrowing the ‘Child Actor’ Label and Finding Freedom on Set
Fanning also reflects on her two-decade career, and the surprising insights she gained from directing her first short film.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Bringing Truth to Every Performance
Julia Louis-Dreyfus opens up about her career, her approach to authentic storytelling, and what drives her role choices—from indie films to Marvel blockbusters.
What Does Cillian Murphy Believe is an Actor’s Most Essential Tool?
Murphy points out that it is important for him to feel empathy for his characters, even if he doesn’t agree with their actions.
Carrie Preston on ‘Elsbeth’ and When the “Alchemy Between the Writing and the Actor Started to Gel”
Preston recalls her first appearance on ‘The Good Wife’, remembering that she “was there as a guest to serve the bigger story, so I didn’t know how far I was being encouraged to go.”
Mark Ruffalo on Comedic Acting and the Challenges of a Motion-Capture Suit
Ruffalo points out that acting in from of a green screen has close parallels to theater training.
What Does Colman Domingo Think are His Strengths as an Actor?
“I didn’t go to graduate school for acting. I learned everything by being in rooms and watching rehearsals I wasn’t even called for because I was learning,” Domingo said.
Andrew Scott Talks About His Playful, Child-Like Approach to Acting
“When kids go, ‘OK, you be this and I’ll be this.’ That ability doesn’t leave us. What does leave us is a lack of self-consciousness. Our job is to hold on to that,” Scott said.
Ke Huy Quan on Lessons He Learned from Tom Hiddleston on ‘Loki”
Quan admits that he found the technical jargon challenging, and turned to co-star Hiddleston for advice.
Barry Keoghan on Making Choices and What He Does to Stay “Mentally” in a Role
Keoghan says he didn’t judge his ‘Saltburn’ character. “All the choices I made as Oliver, I didn’t seem them as sociopathic or wrong.”
Jeffrey Wright on His Early Career and What He Learned from Harrison Ford
Wright enrolled at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts but left after two months. “I learned it the old apprentice way, just working on the stage,” he said.
Is ‘The Bear’ Star Jeremy Allen White a Method Actor?
“What I do try to do is stay close to a feeling that I think is appropriate,” White says.
Bradley Cooper on Playing Leonard Bernstein: “I direct the whole day as him. That’s the only way I know to be absolutely free”
Cooper points out that because he is playing Bernstein at three different ages, he had to approach his portrayal in three different ways.
Austin Butler on “What Really Scares” Him as an Actor
Butler confesses that he always feels nervous about taking on new projects and how he will perform the particular character.
Cillian Murphy “Was Running on Crazy Energy” While Filming ‘Oppenheimer’
“Method acting is a sort of … No,” the Oppenheimer star said.
Natasha Lyonne on Her ‘Poker Face’ Character and Why She Seems “So Casual” When Acting
“Sometimes there’s a mistaken belief that I can just show up and roll into it,” she says.
From High School Play to ‘The Holdovers’: Dominic Sessa on His First Film Role
Sessa, who had just finished performing in his school’s production of “Rumors” by Neil Simon, was scouted by casting directors searching for locations and potential background actors.
Ian McKellen Has No Plans to Retire: “I really feel I’m quite good at this acting thing now”
McKellen also opens up about his approach to acting, including noting the worst experience he ever had making a film.
Jessica Chastain on Her Early Career Experiences and Auditions: I was “trying to do as much as I could”
Chastain notes that the residuals she received from her early projects helped sustain her before her career took off. “I don’t know what I’d have done without that residual money.”
Paul Giamatti Reflects on ‘The Holdovers’ and the Pleasure of Playing a Character “Pleased with His Own Intelligence”
“I had gone to a prep school,” Giamatti said. “I grew up around a lot of people like this. So, it was kind of like, ‘Ooh, this’ll be fun.’ I can just pull on this deep well of all these memories.”
Jeff Bridges on Collaborating with Actors: “Look it, we’re all in this together, man. Let’s make something beautiful”
Actor Jeff Bridges talks about his approach to acting and why he finds “jamming” with other actors to be his ideal way to work on a project.