Top 55 Philip Seymour Hoffman Quotes

I got into plays in high school then I ended up going to college for it.

The foibles of my body are pretty much out there in the work I do.

Directing is a really kind of amazing thing, because you’re helping others and, in the middle of that, you have to worry about yourself.

In life, do you ever really know if you’re missing an opportunity? No, you really don’t.

You can look at anything as a cult. Churches are cults in their own way.

I’ve seen a lot of friends who have a lot of great projects, whether it’s a script or a play or whatever, and it is a great project and they have great people involved, and they can’t make it.

My soul is in good shape.

I think I’m less anonymous than I was.

The drama nerd comes out in me when I’m in a theater.

Well, I think everyone struggles with self-love.

People actually live with their id exposed. They’re not good at concealing what’s going on inside.

Ultimately what I’ll do next is up in the air for me.

If I was a little bit younger I would worry more. I’d want to do one thing at a time but now I try to do a bunch of different things at a time if I can.

I don’t have a specific thing I want anyone to get out of anything I do.

Films are always a fiction, not documentary. Even a documentary is a kind of fiction.

The film is made in the editing room. The shooting of the film is about shopping, almost. It’s like going to get all the ingredients together, and you’ve got to make sure before you leave the store that you got all the ingredients. And then you take those ingredients and you can make a good cake – or not.

People aren’t going to throw the kind of money at certain people that they used to.

I don’t want to repeat myself.

Creating anything is hard.

It’s important to say that actors can’t act alone, it’s impossible. What we have to do is support each other.

Life’s pretty funny when you’re objectively on the outside looking at it.

I have a fine level of recognition in the business and among the acting community now, so I consider myself one of the lucky ones. If I didn’t think that, there would be something wrong with me. I’m grateful and thankful for what I’ve got.

It’s hard for anybody who works a lot and has children. But I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Sometimes I have a great day of filming and sometimes the theater strikes me better. It just depends.

I’ve never been on a cruise.

My love for the theater has always been a priority. That hasn’t changed. I got into acting that way. The film work that came up was really a surprise.

Plays never feel like the right thing to do at the time.

I work constantly but I work at a lot of different things. You know, I run a theater company in New York, I direct plays, act in plays, in movies, so I try to keep it eclectic.

People used to be funny about approaching me, but now they seem to think I’m as sane as anyone who’s done what I’ve done in movies can be.

There’s nothing risky in talking about your personal life. People do it all the time.

I think part of being an actor is staying private.

Well, in the theater, I think you’re actually more responsible for what is going on onstage as a director than you are in film.

Being unemployed is not good for an actor. No, it isn’t, no matter how unsuccessful you are. Because you always remember getting fired from all the restaurants. You remember that stuff very, very strongly.

When people don’t know who you are, they’re seeing your work for the first time. But if they’ve seen a lot, getting certain things across is a more difficult.

I didn’t have any idea that I would be able to have a career in film.

When you have a child, as anyone knows who has them, that’s basically all you want to talk about.

I’ve had to make the transition from sweeping in for 15 minutes, doing my stuff and clearing out, to carrying a movie for the duration – in a dress.

When you’re playing someone who really lived, you carry a burden, a burden to be accurate. But it’s one that you have to let go of ultimately.

I think you should be serious about what you do because this is it. This is the only life you’ve got.

I like to come to the set with very strong ideas and strong opinions about how to do things. And I like also dealing with somebody who’s like that.

Vanity is something that will only get in the way of doing your best work, and ultimately if you’re truly vain you care more about your work than how you look in your work. I actually consider myself a pretty vain guy when it comes to that.

I do understand what it is to not want to commit to someone, knowing that might bring pain or commit to a life that has to do with being responsible to people other than myself. These things, I think, are normal things.

Actors are responsible to the people we play.

I have so much empathy for these young actors that are 19 and all of a sudden they’re beautiful and famous and rich. I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I’d be dead.’

My ideal weight is 205, actually.

Creating something is all about problem-solving.

I think you ultimately have to love who you’re playing. You have to have that kind of feeling. You have to have passion for the person.

Why you do something is always kind of a mystery to me.

I’ve worked with a lot of characters that are unhinged. I’ve played characters that are unhinged. That’s, like, my job.

I think directors should be confident in their leadership capabilities. I think directors should be confident in what they want to do.

I think therapy is a helpful thing. I think everyone knows it. You do it for your life, you do it for yourself, because you want to explore some things, and get at the bottom of some things. It’s about your life, the quality of your life.

When you become a parent, you look at your parents differently. You look at being a child differently. It’s an awakening, a revelation that you have.

I know I wasn’t as handsome as some other guys, but I was OK with that.

Sometimes I’m uncomfortable with the level of fame I’ve got! It all depends on the day and what’s going on. I don’t desire any more fame. I don’t need it.

I didn’t really buy LPs or go to concerts.