John Hawkes Quotes

I always thought of myself as a character actor. I never thought of myself as a leading man.

I don't really think there's much difference between a character actor and a leading man besides aesthetics.

An actor should never be larger than the film he's in.

I have played characters where I haven't been absorbed - you know, what I call a typical film leading man role where you just have to look gorgeous and be attractive and charming. It bores me. I like a bit of dirt, a bit of sand in the oyster.

As far as the leading man/romantic lead, I'll tell you what, I really enjoyed my experience more than I thought or imagined I would on 'Catch and Release.' God bless them if they want to give me another shot at that. I would love to have that as something I can go to on occasion.

I guess because I pay so much attention to the physical part of the character, I don't look upon it as like Charlize Theron up there. I don't think of them as like Charlize Theron films.

When I played Robin Hood, I knew the great role was Alan Rickman's and it didn't bother me. I always think that leading actors should be called the best supporting actors.

I think every leading man wants to be a character actor, and every character actor wants to be a leading man.

Denzel has been that leading man, but it took him a while to get to Training Day and Hurricane Carter.

At the beginning of 'Will and Grace', I played Jack as the funny next-door-neighbor type, as we've seen in the past. And I thought that was my role.

On 'Think Like a Man,' they got the best out of me because they allowed me to bring my own cadences and opinions to the character that I was playing. I think we got the best of that particular character.

I was always a character actor, basically, that sometimes looks like a leading man.

I've never considered myself a leading man, don't look like one, don't want to be one.

I'm an actor. The fact that I'm involved in Jigsaw, I don't approach Jigsaw any differently than I approached The Nordic in 'The Firm' or FBI Agent Stokes in 'Mississippi Burning.' It's the same deal. It's just that the effect is sometimes different. So I say, people ask me, 'How does it feel to be a horror icon?' I'm thrilled. It's great.

I never really thought of myself as being an action hero or a leading man or any of that. I'm a character actor.

My definition of a character actor is - they never get the girl.

I am a character actress. Well, let's say, I am a leading character actress who does interesting, odd parts.

But I would say maybe just from an actress's perspective, probably 'Woman Under the Influence' is the best movie of all time. The style of filmmaking and the performances... you don't feel like you're watching a film.

I think I'll get a little more interesting small parts and see if I can really... I guess you don't have to have the pressure on you compared to when you're a leading man in a film.

'Mad Men' still lives in my life as the best job that I've ever had because I thought the character was genius. It was so well-written.

But obviously you don't want to just be the guy who comes in and sort of spices up every movie. So yeah, definitely moving into more of a leading man role would be great, but on my own terms.

I didn't have this feeling that I should be a leading actor in the cinema. And I wouldn't want the responsibility of the opening weekend.

It's what actors call a big, juicy part, when you're a leading man. I don't get a lot of those. I get a lot of supporting things.

It's properly scary playing a leading man. Growing up, I always wanted to be a character actor.

I always knew I'd be more of a character actor than a leading man, and I always wanted to take that and run with it.