In my acting, I have tried to do this - to present to audiences a living creature in whom they can recognise themselves or someone they know.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
You want people to identify with the person on the screen or in the theater, but you don't want them to identify with you as a person.
Every now and then, people will recognize me at restaurants or Universal Studios or something. I'll always take a picture with them if they want. I mean, that's what telling stories and acting for a living are for - for the people.
I've always been interested in films where you can identify with the actors. Where you can be in their shoes and therefore be more involved if they're people that you recognize.
If I'm doing my job as an actor, the audience knows everything I know about the character.
I have been portrayed by actors in three television documentaries, two plays, one musical and a film. It's no fun watching yourself being traduced and imitated by an actor.
I think that acting involves doing your job so well that you are able to help the viewer identify with the character.
As an actor, I think it's really important to be as anonymous as possible. It's your job to convince people that you are somebody else, and so any recognition I'd get away from the screen - well, it's not something I actively seek. To be honest with you, I'm surprised anybody does.
I can't act, and so I have to live that particular character in my real life and then exhibit it on screen.
That's precisely what we do as actors: try to convince the audience we are somebody else. And if you can do that, you are really doing something.
I know so many acting careers that are deliberately kickstarted by a publicist placing a bit of rubbish in a newspaper. And I don't want that. If someone recognises me, I want it to be because they've seen me in something, not because they have seen me at something.