James Spader Quotes

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James Spader

Profession : Actor

Birth : February 7, 1960

People who supported Obama felt like they formed a relationship, that they were being spoken to. The way that campaign worked and the way he's worked during his first term is to make people feel like he's grasping their hand, whether it's by tweeting or email, moments after an event, sometimes during an event. It makes people relate to him.

James Spader

I think also there's no question that Lincoln has been diluted down through history in some way, almost by becoming as iconic as he is, in a way he's become diluted.

James Spader

Every film you work on is different, and that's part of what it's like for anybody who works on a film, is to learn how to work with others. Learn from top to bottom. Actors have to learn how to work with the director and the director has to learn how to work with actors, and that's not just those two departments.

James Spader

For me, when working on a film or play or television show, everything for me starts with the screenplay and I am devoted to that and that is what I work from. Any research I do or any preparation I do on my own is all ultimately in service of that.

James Spader

I'm not someone so much interested in exploring a slice of life unless that is down the corridor, around the corner, up the alley, and down the rabbit hole. That, I like.

James Spader

There are some actors who are very good at developing things, who have... 'things in the pipeline.' I am abysmal at that kind of thing, loathe it, and am a terrible planner. Unless I'm showing up on the set and acting, I prefer to have nothing to do with the actual business of being an actor.

James Spader

I am not very responsible economically. I have a history working on films for years and years, and by the time I was starting the next film, I was starting from zero again.

James Spader

I'm paid well and am demanding of the people I work with, and therefore, I feel I should bring a lot.

James Spader

Working in theater, film, or television are three different jobs for an actor, and I accept them as such.

James Spader

I've never been a big TV watcher.

James Spader

I didn't really look like a character actor, yet those were the roles I loved to play. If you were a character actor who didn't necessarily look like a character actor, you had to play bad guys.

James Spader

I know that one's visibility is very high on television, even with an unsuccessful show! With a successful role, it's even higher.

James Spader

I think the most significant change in my life is the decision to do a series. An hourlong dramatic television series on a broadcast network swallows you and chews you up and refuses to spit you out. You're making a decision that's going to be a profound and significant impact on the practical aspects of your life.

James Spader

When I'm not working, I don't get my hair cut. I don't know what the next character looks like.

James Spader

I've made a lot of very small movies that may not have had a large initial audience. Then it shows up on cable.

James Spader

The unknown is very appealing to me. I like to be surprised. I love the idea I might know less at the end of reading something than I do at the beginning.

James Spader

I've had tremendous opportunities in film and continue to have them, but it's such a different thing to do a television show, and I'm very lucky to be able to do them both.

James Spader

I'm not a planner. I like to try something different, to just see what happens.

James Spader

I pretty quickly move from an idea to possibilities for execution. If there's one advantage, I think, with working in television for even a short amount of time is trying to gain a faculty for processing a storyline or an idea and how to then best implement that and execute that as swiftly as possible.

James Spader

If you find great difficulty in trying to reckon with the future or even the present, I think it's intuitive to start that process by reckoning with the past.

James Spader