My parents were disappointed I didn't finish college, and they were really upset when I went to Hollywood to become an actor. I was a big disappointment to them.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
My parents didn't want me to be an actor. They didn't think I could take the rejection, and I have to say they were probably right.
So when I told my parents I wanted to go into acting because I was flunking out of my first year of junior college, they were relieved that I had picked something other than joining the army. But I can't imagine how they had high hopes for me.
When I told my parents I wanted to be an actor, it was like saying I wanted to be an astronaut. Not because it was highfalutin' in any way - just because they didn't know anybody in that field. They were anxious of a profession they knew nothing about.
I told my parents I wanted to be an actor, and they were getting ready for a life of unemployment, so they're just happy I'm in work!
When I told my parents, 'I'm going to be an actor,' they screamed and wept and freaked out.
When I moved to Los Angeles, I figured I'm really going to make an attempt to become a real actor. And when I did that, I thought it was time for me to face my parents and tell them what I did.
My parents made me finish high school before I started acting, and I did, like, two weeks of fine arts college before I was like, 'This sucks. I'm going!' I got a few small jobs, and then I booked a big-for-Canada feature.
It really hit home that my parents felt as though they didn't have to worry anymore. They realized if you could win an Oscar, that was a good sign.
My parents wanted me to be a doctor, and they weren't very happy at the idea of me choosing acting as a career. Everyone in my family went to university - my older brother is a lawyer - but when they saw me for the first time at the theatre, they thought, 'OK.' They like it very much now.
And I finished college because I thought how much it would upset my parents if I didn't.