The actor's dilemma

You seem very cautious about roles in general.

I have been. I mean, I feel one of the powers you have as an actor is to say no to something.

People get all twisted up: They feel they have to make a strategy.

I mean, look. Most actors, 99.9%, are just working actors. They love acting or they're paying rent. And that's great and admirable. Then there's a small percentage that make a great living. And are able to be choosy about the work.

So there's a huge disparity in freedom and income.

Yeah, forget it. I've had to do such crap that it will haunt me until my last day. Honestly! But you know, I think Orson Welles said it: I'm an actor, I get paid to act. Which is true! You know? There is something to be said about, "Look, you're an actor, you've got a paying job to be an actor, show up." It's not like a painter's gonna go, "No, I don't wanna paint that house! I don't like the neighborhood."

I guess in some ways we take it too seriously.

Yeah, we do. That's been my struggle as an artist and an actor, of just vacillating between taking myself too seriously and then not taking myself seriously at all to the point of ridiculousness that I feel this is the dumbest way ever to be making a living. The fact that I have to put on makeup in the morning and put hair gel in my hair and say ridiculous lines, it just feels absurd. Then there's moments you're connected with an actor and you're inspired and it's fantastic. And you feel so grateful to be able to do it. I've got a real love-hate relationship with acting for sure.