Actors on Acting Archives

Tom Holland Recalls His Spider-Man Audition and How He found Out He was Cast

“When we did the screen tests, there were six of us all in this room waiting to audition. It felt like The Hunger Games.” – Tom Holland on His Spider-Man Audition

Mark-Paul Gosselaar on ‘Pitch’: “The other side, the acting side, is easy, in relation to the physical stuff”

“I started playing it in a certain way and the writers started writing it a certain way to complement what I was doing onscreen.” – Mark-Paul Gosselaar on ‘Pitch’

Miles Teller: “Look, it’s tough when you’re a young actor. People aren’t really seeing the career that you’re going to carve out”

“I knew it was time for me to kind of evolve. Look, nobody tells you that. You just have to say now’s the time.” – Miles Teller

Eddie Redmayne Talks Fantastic Beasts and Not Wanting to be the “One Who Comes In and Screws It Up”

Oscar winning actor Eddie Redmayne is about to enter the magical wizarding world of J.K. Rowling’s creation. The same mind that brought us Harry Potter has now written her first screenplay; Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Redmayne plays the central role of Newt Scamander, a magizoologist who will

Amy Adams: “I thought to be an actress you had to make people pay attention to you, and that’s just not my energy”

“I think the more people are concerned with me, the less they can invest in my characters.” – Amy Adams

To Play a Smoker on ‘Rectify’, Abigail Spencer Asked a Smoker How to Act Like a Smoker

“I had never smoked before playing Amantha. I thought it was going to be my kryptonite.” – Abigail Spencer

Why Alexander Skarsgård Always Thinks He’s Going to Be Fired

“It’s not about wanting to show I’m versatile. It’s just feeling that excitement of not knowing who a character is but figuring it out and finding him.” – Alexander Skarsgård

Mahershala Ali on Playing the Villain in ‘Luke Cage’: “The task is for you to humanize them”

“If you go into playing these people and put your energy toward the anger and the violence, you disconnect yourself from the root of who these people are, who any character is.” – Mahershala Ali

Naomie Harris on ‘Moonlight’: “It was a privilege to be part of this amazing project”

“To do your best work with anyone, I think you need to feel safe and comfortable.” – Actress Naomie Harris

Alden Ehrenreich on Auditioning for Han Solo and His Early Career Success

“Each film and each character is a completely new set of challenges.” – Alden Ehrenreich

Luke Evans on Being Cast in Beauty and the Beast and the “Huge Moment” He Had Early in His Career

“It’s a validation that you are the right person for the job because they’ve chosen and they’ve seen you do something connected to that role.” – Luke Evans on Auditioning

Parker Posey on Her Improv Skills: “I still don’t think I’m actually good at it”

“Every time I do something, I worry it’s my last job… I think that’s normal though.” – Parker Posey

William H. Macy: “This may sound pretentious, but I am getting better at what I do every day”

“I love the fact that I work every day.” – William H. Macy

Luke Hemsworth on ‘Westworld’: “It was a no-brainer to me. I was absolutely going to jump onboard”

“As an actor, if you’re given very little information about what’s going on, then you’re forced to make it up.” – Luke Hemsworth

Khary Payton on His ‘Walking Dead’ Audition: “It was one of the more substantial auditions I’ve ever done”

“I always say I’m in the hope business. You’ve got to stay hopeful. You’ve got to get up off your behind and try again…” – Khary Payton

Mike Colter on Playing ‘Luke Cage’: “I was looking at it from the standpoint of an artist”

Colter says that it didn’t take long for him to understand the importance of the character in comic book history.

Emily Blunt on ‘The Girl on the Train’: “It is a rarity in Hollywood to have a mainstream film with such a flawed [female] character”

“For me, when you’re doing a high-octane emotional scene, I can’t plan them out, so I don’t rehearse them.” – Emily Blunt