Laurence Fishburne Quotes

The commercial I did for Kia was hilarious and unexpected, so that, I think, is also another way of signaling to the audience that there's more to me than Morpheus.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, Audience, Commercial, Hilarious

As an actor, Coppola trained me. That was my training ground.

- Laurence Fishburne

Me, Actor, Trained, Training Ground

I've been around long enough now and have learned to be flexible enough to know that every movie isn't going to be 'Apocalypse Now,' and every director doesn't have to be Stanley Kubrick.

- Laurence Fishburne

Movie, Been, Learned, None

I'm left-handed: I can think and feel at the same time. My feminine side is very highly developed.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, Very, Side, Left-Handed

Playing solo with an audience for an hour and 30 minutes without a break means I have to, as the jazz cats say, get into the shed and work on my chops.

- Laurence Fishburne

Audience, Means, Shed, Chops

'The Fugitive Kind,' 'Rope,' 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?' - I watched all these as a way of reminding myself that you can do a movie based on a play. You can do a movie that stays in one place for a long stretch.

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Movie, Based, None

I actually had the opportunity to stand at the lectern in the Supreme Court and face the justices, which was really a powerful thing for me.

- Laurence Fishburne

Opportunity, Had, Which, Justices

Acting and philanthropy are braided together. I've tried to seek out things that speak not just specifically to the community that created me, but that speak in a way that's universal and all of humanity celebrates.

- Laurence Fishburne

Community, Seek, Created, Specifically

I was in a movie with Marlon Brando. Now, I didn't have any scenes with Marlon Brando, but I had scenes with Martin Sheen and was around Dennis Hopper, who was a child actor in the studio system and was enamored of James Dean, as was Martin, and they were all sort of disciples of Brando.

- Laurence Fishburne

Movie, Studio, Dean, Brando

I learned tolerance at a very early age.

- Laurence Fishburne

Very, Very Early Age, Tolerance

I think of myself as being a relatively intelligent man who is open to a lot of different things and I think that questioning our purpose in life and the meaning of existence is something that we all go through at some point.

- Laurence Fishburne

Through, Some, I Think, Meaning Of

Philanthropic work reminds you of everyone's common humanity, and that's really the common denominator for everyone.

- Laurence Fishburne

Common, Common Denominator, Reminds

I think there's going to be many special episodes of 'Blackish.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, Special, I Think, Episodes

It's very difficult to set a film in one setting without giving the audience some intensity and some relief.

- Laurence Fishburne

Audience, Some, Very, Relief

When I was ten, I did a play at the Henry Street Settlement Playhouse, Charles Fuller's first play. He went on to write 'A Soldier's Story,' among other things. I realized, 'Oh, I can be anything doing this.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Doing, Other, Settlement

I play characters. I don't think I really have a persona per se. I don't play the same guy every time. I show up, you don't know what I'm gonna do. I like it that way. I've intentionally tried to do it that way. I think that's what's interesting.

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Show, I Think, Every Time

Obviously, after 'The Matrix,' it was a case of, 'OK, I did that. What's next?' I mean, it's always like that, but more so this time. How do I change it up? How do I keep it interesting for myself?

- Laurence Fishburne

Next, Always, Like, OK

It's a huge blessing to know you've done something that has affected people the way 'The Matrix' has. It's like, there's 'Star Wars,' and then there's 'The Matrix.' It's cool to be a part of that.

- Laurence Fishburne

Star, Like, Star Wars, Blessing

My company, Cinema Gypsy, produced a podcast, 'Bronzeville,' in conjunction with Larenz Tate and his brothers that we're developing into a television show. It deals with a very tight-knit African-American community in Chicago in 1947 and people who run a numbers wheel.

- Laurence Fishburne

Gypsy, Brothers, Very, Conjunction

I love the opportunity to use my full range, and so playing in the comedy 'Black-ish' gives me the opportunity to show my lighter side, and playing in this beautiful, elegant horror story of 'Hannibal,' I get to use my darker and more cerebral side. It's really wonderful.

- Laurence Fishburne

Love, Show, Use, Hannibal

I didn't want to be a big star. I wanted to be a really good actor.

- Laurence Fishburne

Star, Big, Actor, Big Star

I don't necessarily go out and try to do something that's going to be just something that will please the audience. I'm not interested in doing something where I get the most people to come see the movie at the same time and they get the biggest explosion. I'm not interested in that.

- Laurence Fishburne

Doing, Movie, Necessarily, Just Something

'Apocalypse Now' was my craziest experience ever. I was 14 years old, and I'd lied about my age to get the role. I haven't had another film top it.

- Laurence Fishburne

Old, Role, Another, Craziest

I carry a lot of feminine energy as well as masculine energy, and that's the hit that people are getting. That vulnerable thing is not what we assume with black males. You get it, and then they cease to become scary. They become human. You cease to have a bogeyman.

- Laurence Fishburne

Feminine, Getting, Lot, Assume

We don't really see a lot of war movies about the people that are left behind, dealing with the deaths of those who serve and the sacrifices they make.

- Laurence Fishburne

Behind, Dealing, Sacrifices, War Movies

It's always a collective group of people coming together to oppose those things which are fundamentally contrary to our basic humanity.

- Laurence Fishburne

People, Always, Which, Group

Hiding a talent is not exclusive to any one particular group of people: young, old, black, white, Latin. It doesn't matter. It's universal. The idea that you have a gift or talent is always kind of threatening.

- Laurence Fishburne

Gift, Young, Always, Group

If you like rock and roll, if you like rhythm and blues, if you like jazz, if you like hip-hop, you might be black-ish.

- Laurence Fishburne

Rock And Roll, Rock, Like, Hip-Hop

It's important for a lot of young black males to value swagger over intelligence. Swagger is important, but intelligence must come before the swagger.

- Laurence Fishburne

Young, Over, Before, Males

You can't be bad when you're working with a kid. They have the instincts that all great actors have.

- Laurence Fishburne

Working, Kid, Bad, Instincts

I work with my instincts. I don't have a process that I learned in an acting class whereby I break a script down or whereby I do a certain kind of research.

- Laurence Fishburne

Process, Break, Learned, Instincts

Do mainstream crowds want to watch a movie about good things happening in black neighborhoods? Do black audiences want to see a little girl doing something in a white world?

- Laurence Fishburne

Doing, Movie, Neighborhoods, Good Things

In order to be the best version of yourself, you have to dedicate time, effort, and support to other people who need it.

- Laurence Fishburne

Best, Need, Other, Order

Acting is a childlike thing. To act well, you have to be childlike in order to free yourself.

- Laurence Fishburne

Yourself, Well, Act, Order

I can't remember a picture that has expressed black attitudes and personal relationships as vividly as we've done in 'Cadence.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Black, Personal, Attitudes, Expressed

After 'Othello,' it was, like, 'I can stop acting. I have played one of the great characters in the English language. I feel I have played him well and honorably. I have nothing to prove anymore.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Prove, Like, Othello, Honorably

I have taken care of my gift, and because I've taken care of my gift, I feel like I've been continually and constantly blessed to get to do wonderful things.

- Laurence Fishburne

Gift, Like, Been, Wonderful Things

I always want to read the script and know everything and at least understand the context of the world that you're in and why you're there and all that stuff. It's good to know something. I like to know, but I've never been one of these, 'Just show me my stuff,' no, I like to know what the whole picture is so I can understand how I fit into it.

- Laurence Fishburne

Show, Been, Least, Context

I think I've certainly learned a lot of lessons in humility and continue to work on that part of myself.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, I Think, Certainly, Lessons

My mother is quite a woman. She would push me, and when I got tired of her pushing, I'd say: 'Leave me alone. Don't push so much.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Woman, Tired, Say, Push

I have a man cave somewhere in California - a totally undisclosed location where manly things occur. There are motorcycles, there are secret doors and passageways. Women are welcome, but they must knock.

- Laurence Fishburne

Cave, Knock, Occur, Women Are

As a man of colour, I've spent my life asking people to see me for who I am. With Obama in the White House, it feels like people have finally caught up to where I've been most of my life.

- Laurence Fishburne

My Life, Caught, Feels, White House

Back in 1978, when I was still in high school, I went to see a Broadway show, 'Paul Robeson,' starring James Earl Jones. It was all about Robeson's journey as a human being, an artist, a champion of civil rights. Had I not seen the play, I might not have known who Robeson was. I was certainly never taught about him in school.

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Artist, Broadway, Champion

I think everyone is very surprised at how 'Matrix' has become the pop culture phenomenon that it is.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, I Think, Very, Surprised

I see that I have, as part of my stock in trade, a very regal personality and carriage. I see that I have a kind of strength, a kind of command, and a kind of power that one would associated with a monarch.

- Laurence Fishburne

Strength, Very, Carriage, Stock

I don't think Othello is a jealous man - he is a man who has been deceived by another person, just as everybody in the play is deceived by that person... The playwright uses the word 'jealousy' over and over and over again, but I don't think it has anything to do with being jealous.

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Think, Over, Playwright

As a movie star, you get good tables at restaurants.

- Laurence Fishburne

Star, Movie, Tables, Movie Star

Some people think of me as an actor and some as a movie star, so I sort of guess that makes me both. I love making movies, and I love playing on the stage.

- Laurence Fishburne

Love, Think, Some, Movie Star

Special effects are characters. Special effects are essential elements. Just because you can't see them doesn't mean they aren't there.

- Laurence Fishburne

Special Effects, Them, Essential

Anytime we're talking about Thurgood Marshall, that's a good thing, I think, because it gives us an opportunity to go back, look at the history, and recognize what his contributions were.

- Laurence Fishburne

Back, I Think, About, Contributions

I certainly believe that being in contact with one's spirit and nurturing one's spirit is as important as nurturing one's body and mind. We are three dimensional beings: body, mind, spirit.

- Laurence Fishburne

Mind, Spirit, Certainly, Nurturing

I certainly believe that being in contact with one's spirit and nurturing one's spirit is as important as nurturing one's body and mind.

- Laurence Fishburne

Mind, Important, Certainly, Nurturing

If you're playing a real person, then you want to do a certain amount of research, but that's only going to be so useful to you. Each role requires a different kind of approach to get ready.

- Laurence Fishburne

Role, Real Person, Approach, Requires

I didn't have much of a childhood, but that's O.K. I have a livelihood.

- Laurence Fishburne

Childhood, Much, Livelihood

You can't go looking for another one of those franchises. You only ever get one of those. You get 'Stars Wars'; you get 'Indiana Jones' or get 'The Matrix.' I've had my franchise.

- Laurence Fishburne

Go, Another, Franchise, Indiana

I don't believe in acting teachers for me, so it's God's joke that he gave me a best friend who's an acting teacher.

- Laurence Fishburne

Teacher, Best, Believe, Joke

Mine were informal mentors. They were all in my working life.

- Laurence Fishburne

Mentors, Mine, Were, Informal

The 50s are the age of elegance. That's kind of my intention when I get dressed: casual elegance.

- Laurence Fishburne

Elegance, Kind, Dressed, Intention

I believe in my children. I believe in human beings. I believe in the goodness that is in human beings. I believe in many, many things that I cannot prove. I believe that there's the world of the seen and the world of the unseen.

- Laurence Fishburne

Prove, I Believe That, I Believe In

I have this unshakeable faith. I believe in myself; I believe in God.

- Laurence Fishburne

Faith, Myself, Believe, I Believe In

I have heard a lot of people talk about this grind of series television. I have not seen it yet.

- Laurence Fishburne

Television, Lot, Series, Grind

I came up around people who took acting seriously, who cared about acting, cared about the theater and, in the '70s, made movies that said something that mattered. I came up with those people, and I was a kid. Their ethos and credo became mine.

- Laurence Fishburne

Kid, Mattered, Became, Cared

When I first read 'Boyz,' I cried. It could have been about some kids in Warsaw, Poland. I knew it was good, but I had no idea what it would do to me.

- Laurence Fishburne

Some, Been, Read, Cried

When I think of Othello, I think of a poet-warrior. Let me say that again - a romantic warrior. And I think I have those qualities in common with him.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, I Think, Othello, Qualities

Doing 'CSI: N.Y.' is not 'CSI.' Doing 'CSI: Miami' is not 'CSI: N.Y.,' it's 'CSI: Miami.' It has a very, very specific tone. It has a very specific look. It has a specific way in which they tell their stories that's different from 'CSI: N.Y.' and 'CSI.'

- Laurence Fishburne

Doing, Very, Which, CSI

I return to the stage first and foremost because I'm an actor, and I love it.

- Laurence Fishburne

Love, Actor, I Love, Return

I think any city that does the Olympics takes on the world and has to grow and has to kind of assimilate all sorts of folks.

- Laurence Fishburne

Grow, Think, I Think, Folks

People think my name is Morpheus. Many times, people will say to me, 'Morpheus!' and I will complete the sentence by saying, 'is not my name!'

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, Will, Sentence, Complete

I've played a lot of bad guys, 'cause that was the only work I could get. People saw my face and went 'oooh'.

- Laurence Fishburne

Work, Bad, Could, Bad Guys

We are three dimensional beings: body, mind, spirit.

- Laurence Fishburne

Mind, Body, Spirit, Beings

It's nice to get the feedback from a theater audience. It's a gas.

- Laurence Fishburne

Feedback, Audience, Theater, Gas

I try to meditate.

- Laurence Fishburne

Try, Meditate

There's a bunch of plays that I never got to do because I was either too young or too old for the parts, like 'Slow Dance on the Killing Ground' and 'Dutchman.' For 'American Buffalo,' I was the wrong color.

- Laurence Fishburne

Color, Young, Plays, Parts

I had two times in my life where I wanted to give up everything I worked for, but God gave me a job.

- Laurence Fishburne

My Life, Give, Had, Gave

When I came into my adulthood, I recognized how fortunate I was to be doing what I loved to do.

- Laurence Fishburne

Loved, Doing, How, I Came

My production company, what we are trying to do is I'm trying to create content that speaks to me, and it's not one color. It's not one size fits all.

- Laurence Fishburne

Color, Production, Fits, Size

I don't want to be 45 years old and have been a hot actor when I was 33 and have people going, 'Whatever happened to Fishburne?'

- Laurence Fishburne

Old, Going, Been, Happened

Having 50 to 60 years on the planet should give you a sense of how to master the way you look and live your life.

- Laurence Fishburne

Give, Planet, Having, Master

Shooting a film with seven to eight actors together is complicated sometimes because you have to cover everybody.

- Laurence Fishburne

Sometimes, Cover, Everybody, Complicated

It's funny, a lot of people think I take myself seriously because I come off so serious sometimes. But it's not that I take myself seriously, I take what I do seriously.

- Laurence Fishburne

Myself, Think, Sometimes, Seriously

John Wick is not a guy that asks for help, so when he goes to somebody for help, whoever that is, you know he's a serious cat.

- Laurence Fishburne

Goes, Guy, Somebody, Serious

My vocation is I do what I do. I'm an actor; that's what I do.

- Laurence Fishburne

Actor, Vocation

If you asked someone who was a Maori about how they felt about how they were treated in Australia or New Zealand, you'll get an answer. They'll have something to tell you. And you might not like what you hear.

- Laurence Fishburne

New, Like, Treated, Asked

I was a child actor but not a child star.

- Laurence Fishburne

Child, Star, Actor, Child Actor

A smart black guy is confronting for most people. But that's on them, not on me.

- Laurence Fishburne

Black, Most, Confronting, Smart

Things have become considerably better for men of colour since I was born. But I'd say that we'll be really getting somewhere when things get better for women of colour.

- Laurence Fishburne

I Was Born, Considerably, Colour

On a motorcycle, you can't really think about more than where you are. There's a freedom that comes with that - from stress, worry, sweating the small stuff.

- Laurence Fishburne

Worry, Small, Think, Motorcycle

What I continue to learn as a parent is to be mindful of the fact that I am responsible for being the parent that my children need me to be and not necessarily the parent I want to be.

- Laurence Fishburne

Parent, Learn, Fact, Responsible

I don't ever get to the point where anything is old hat.

- Laurence Fishburne

Old, Get, Ever, Hat

I really don't know that I'm iconic. I don't even know that people think I'm cool.

- Laurence Fishburne

Cool, Think, Even, Iconic

There's great theatre in New York City, but no New York City in theatre.

- Laurence Fishburne

City, New York, New, Theatre

We are our children's first teachers.

- Laurence Fishburne

Children, First, Our, Teachers

Doing theater makes you feel like a real actor.

- Laurence Fishburne

Doing, Actor, Like, Theater

I can't imagine not coming back to the theater. It's where I started.

- Laurence Fishburne

Back, Imagine, Where, Theater

It's my luck that I was born a bit of an old soul, and it's served me well.

- Laurence Fishburne

Soul, Luck, Old, I Was Born

I have a relationship with the southern hemisphere that's a really good one. I love it there.

- Laurence Fishburne

Love, I Love, Hemisphere, Southern

I try to stay in shape a little bit, but I don't obsess about it.

- Laurence Fishburne

Shape, About, Obsess, Little Bit

All I know is, I'm trying to do things that are a little different whenever I can.

- Laurence Fishburne

Trying, Know, Things, Whenever

Some characters need to be more performance-orientated; some, you have to be still.

- Laurence Fishburne

Need, Some, Still, Characters

I'm not dyeing my hair and trying to pretend I'm 40. That's not going to work for me.

- Laurence Fishburne

Work, Trying, Going, Hair

I always wanted to play a cowboy. I just didn't get to do it the way I thought I would.

- Laurence Fishburne

Play, Always, Wanted, Cowboy

You know, whatever happens between the two of us that's created when we come together as actors is not something I think we can explain.

- Laurence Fishburne

Think, I Think, Created, Explain

Projects don't need to be special for me to sign up, but I do need them to have something that speaks to me in some way.

- Laurence Fishburne

Need, Some, Sign, Projects

I'm passionate about all the things I do, really.

- Laurence Fishburne

Things, About, Really, Passionate

Jesse Eisenberg, this little nebbishy guy, as Lex Luthor? For me, that's a genius move.

- Laurence Fishburne

Me, Guy, Move, Genius

I ain't afraid of germs, man. And I ain't afraid of getting sick.

- Laurence Fishburne

Man, Afraid, Getting, Sick

Most of us are afraid of our success, that we will actually be great.

- Laurence Fishburne

Will, Most, Actually, Afraid

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