Niels Arden Oplev Quotes

Matching character and actor is what a good director does.

I think filmmakers are always interested in getting the best actor that they can find, the person who's the most right for it.

The closer a part is to you, the harder it is to play. Anything else is just imitation. If I'm playing a Russian countess, I get the hat, the accent, the outrageousness. Easy. Playing a murderess? Perfect.

Casting is storytelling.

My agents usually get a breakdown of all the projects that are out there. When I got 'Divergent,' they hadn't finished the script. They knew they wanted the leader of the Dauntless to have a certain demeanor and energy. They had me read a short monologue, and I got the part.

I think that acting involves doing your job so well that you are able to help the viewer identify with the character.

The thing about being an actor is that you're acting. It's not that big of a deal of to play someone different from yourself.

I would love to play Bobby in 'Company.' Also, I would love to play George in 'Sunday.'

Did Anthony Hopkins really have to be a serial killer to be in 'Silence of the Lambs?,' I don't think so, no. It's called acting, people.

When you drop your guard in films, the acting process compensates. You get lazy and you start acting.

Preparation is definitely important, but it depends on the kinds of roles I do. Like, I completely identify with my character in 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.' I had to be myself and I didn't have to actually prepare for it.

Something just happens when you read a part. You know, if you'd like to do it or if you don't believe it.

What I love to do requires portraying different characters, and you have to separate your life from the role.

On the stage you develop a character that's different from yourself. In a film they're always saying, 'Walk over here. Say this line. Be you.'

How do you play 'righteous'? Do you just kind of stand up straighter? What does that mean as an actor? You don't really play a quality.

I guess every actor has certain emotions they can access easier than others.

Starting with 'Thirteen,' my known technique is to cast the lead, then find someone with whom they have incredible chemistry.

To me, casting is all about finding a character within the actor off the screen as much as on the screen.

I wouldn't say I'm a Method actor, but there are times where a role will require you to live in their world.

When you get to set, you don't try to play the plot; you just play the character.

It's an interesting thing when you're casting a film - especially when you're trying to discover someone - you're waiting for someone to step into the room in an audition process and claim the role.

I love exploring the characters that I play, but the reason I sign on for something isn't the details of the story but the universal message.

Sometimes you read things that people don't even notice in a performance, that you just are moved by or understand that this actor is really living his or her life on the screen. The first time I realized that was when I watched Brando in 'On the Waterfront.'

I've played several real characters, and I've always found it very difficult because you don't want to do an impersonation.

Once you're playing someone, you shouldn't be judging them in any way. That's what being an actor is - it's having empathy for people that are different from yourself. Once you've committed to that person, your responsibility is to tell that story.