Actors on Acting Archives

Idris Elba on Acting in Aaron Sorkin’s Directorial Debut: “I winged that performance, if I’m honest”

Elba makes two surprising admissions about his lack of readiness for the role and his belief that he wouldn’t be on Sorkin’s radar.

Dylan O’Brien on His ‘Maze Runner’ Injury and Working with Michael Keaton on ‘American Assassin’

“Getting to play a character over a lengthy period of time is always a pleasure, especially if you like the character.” – Dylan O’Brien

Billy Eichner on His Unsuccessful Past as a Child Actor: “I was too tall. I was too this. I was too that”

Eichner reveals that he turned to comedy because his initial forays into acting proved unsuccessful.

Eddie Izzard on Creating a Character: “I should be able to come off script and improvise”

“The better you researched it – the better you are into the character before you land on the set, the easier it’s going to be. ” – Eddie Izzard on Preparing for a Role

Mackenzie Davis on Breakthrough ‘Halt and Catch Fire’ Role: “It was one of my very first jobs. I was so nervous”

“When I started this job, I remembered looking up “how actors prepare for parts” because I just didn’t know!” – Mackenzie Davis

Michael Keaton on Choosing Roles: “If you overthink the money part, you tend to mess it up”

Keaton explains why material is so much more important to him than money.

Bill Skarsgard on Playing Pennywise in ‘It’: “It was by far the most exhausting character I’ve ever done, physically and mentally”

The Pennywise actor spoke about why it was such a difficult role to play, why the role terrified him, and what he has learned from his acting family.

Sophie Turner on Falling in Love with Acting and Playing Sansa on ‘Game of Thrones’

“To be able to flesh out a character for over eight or so years has been really amazing.” – Sophie Turner on Playing Sansa Stark

Kit Harington on Playing Jon Snow: “You take every scene as it comes”

The Jon Snow actor talks about acting subtle on a massive production and why he thinks his initial approach to the character was wrong

Dave Bautista on Shooting the Low-Budget Film, ‘Bushwick’

Bautista spoke about why he took the role even though he didn’t initially like the script and what he brought to the character.

Griffin Newman on ‘The Tick’: “When I got the call back and I moved along in the process, it made me more desperate to be part of it.”

“My lifelong quest has been to figure out how sad you can make things, and also be funny.” – Griffin Newman

Aidan Gillen on Auditions, ‘Game of Thrones’, and Having a “Pinball” Career

“I’ve never been good at auditions and I’ve never really gotten many jobs from auditions.” – Aidan Gillen

Bob Odenkirk on ‘Better Call Saul’: “I like… playing the moment, without a sense of where it’s going to go next”

Odenkirk reveals whether he sees himself as an actor or a writer.

Ewan McGregor on Playing Two Characters on ‘Fargo’: “It’s a great challenge as an actor, and there’s something very satisfying about it”

“…the challenge for me really as an actor was to try and play the two parts without it being a hindrance to the audience.” – Ewan McGregor