I'd always been fascinated by people who allow themselves to be so rude and irritated and foul-mouthed and hostile, but usually you can sense there's something vulnerable beneath them - a shield they use to protect that vulnerable side. Finally, when they expose that soft spot, it's kind of touching.

I love cereal. I eat several bowls a day, mostly a few late at night.

There's a lot of people that I would love to work with. There's a lot of different kinds of parts I wanna play. As your career progresses, you hope that you get some more opportunity or some more choice.

My first paying job might have been doing a play, actually. My mom paid me to dress up as a flounder at my sister's 'Little Mermaid' - themed birthday party when I was little.

I'm a sucker for period pieces. There is always great opportunity for research and to delude yourself into feeling like you are in a different time and place.

On 'There Will Be Blood,' I was cast at the last minute. I had 3 and a half to 4 days to get ready for the first day. I just went for it, threw myself in there and gave it everything I had. That was just guts and instinct, not a lot of preparation.

I like characters that make me feel challenged and sort of inspired.

There are maybe 100 actors I look up to, but my first two favourite actors were Dustin Hoffman and Jack Nicholson.

With somebody like Harrison Ford, they're so commanding and confident, and you know, he does have a certain power or charisma, and those are things that are sort of ineffable.

'Little Miss Sunshine' was really important to me.

I guess sometimes fear is a good thing. It's a really good motivator.

Homeless people really upset me when I was little. A lot of kids have this reaction, but I would get really worried or sad or concerned or cry.

There's that thing that if you want to have any kind of lasting love, I think you have to love the whole person and not just the parts of them that you choose.

George C. Scott, man, was a powerful dude.

I think control is a two-way street; sometimes people want to control things to keep them safe if they are afraid of life.

I've been fortunate to work with several actors and directors who I look up to, and learned from each of them.

I'm not a big shopper. I'm a pretty simple dresser, and that's not my pleasure go-to thing, looking for clothes.

I think that one of the strangest things about being an actor is, it's almost freelance work.

As an actor, I always feel you basically have to be able to delude yourself.

People think memorizing lines is hard, when that's the last thing you worry about. You get that done, and then you've got to worry about the internal stuff, which is the challenging part.

Films can be entertaining without shying away from exploring something. They can be magical and have fantasy, but also can have enough reality that you can be really emotionally invested.

I mean, to feel in good hands as an actor... it's the best feeling.

I would not take a girl to a club on a Thursday. I would not take her to a really noisy, swanky restaurant.

I am baffled by good writing.

In 'There Will Be Blood,' my character was someone who was an actor himself almost. He had a rehearsed quality about him. He was a performance artist in a way.

I think the idea is to try and understand everything about the characters and where the character is coming from, from their point of view, why they say what they do. And not, 'Oh, but I would never say that. Why does the character say that?' But then making it as personal as possible.

The idea of writer's block or not having inspiration is totally terrifying to me.

I don't like tight pants on guys.

A lot of people think I must be weird because of the films I've done. I get that.

I don't really know what kind of actor I am.

I really don't want to go to work every day convincing myself of what I'm saying. I want the material to make me a better actor; then I try to return the favor to the material.

I think 'American Pie' is great.

I volunteered at a homeless shelter in preparation for 'Being Flynn,' and when I'm walking along the Bowery, that's the first thing that comes to mind. That's a nice memory.

Have I seen any plays that I've been in? Uh, you know, might be a little weird.

'Looper' was a wonderful script. Rian Johnson is the real deal and a really talented filmmaker.

When I'm not excited, it makes acting very hard for me.

I used to write a lot of songs. I was an English major in college. I was a deluded poet for a year. Totally deluded.

When I'm not acting, I like to go home and be really normal. So I usually grow out my hair until I get the next part.

It's a lot of fun to be a part of films that you don't exactly know how they're going to turn out.

I like listening to my playlist on the iPod. I don't want radio with commercials.

You look at the part in '12 Years A Slave,' you finish that script - I mean, it's a powerful story. You go, 'Man, I have to play a bad character in this.' And then you go, 'Well, do I want to play a bad character and contribute to a good story?'

I think it is important to make sure that I have my real life as well, because Hollywood can certainly seem like an alternate reality sometimes.

Some projects go as you hope or imagine, and some change or reveal themselves in a different way; it depends.

I approach every role from scratch.

I feel like, once you're doing a job, you shouldn't talk about it.

I've definitely been in ruts, and I think having some kind of perseverance is important.

You try to get to know your character as best as you can before you start filming - what's written and not written.

I sort of grew up doing theater. And that's how I got into film, actually.

The way Hollywood works, you're never sure if their first thought is to make a great film and honor the material or just another business property.

I can obviously relate to a character who is an artist, because the creative process is a big part of my life.