Robert De Niro Character Quotations

I spent lunchtime in a grave during the filming of 'Bloody Mama.' When you're younger, you feel that's what you need to do to help you stay in character. When you get older, you become more confident and less intense about it - and you can achieve the same effect.

I always go back to how people behave. If you watch how people actually behave in a situation, it's very simple and honest and contained. You don't need to use as much expression, as much feeling. Some characters will boil over, and that's another thing, but a lot of times I think you can just do very, very little.

I don't get into these long-winded heavy discussions about character - do we do this or that or what. At the end of the day, what you gotta do is just go out there and do it.

You never know what you do that could be totally out of left field, which actually might work and give something fresh to the whole scene, to the character, whatever. If you have that with a director who then knows how to shape it, either in the direction, in the moment, or in the editing, then that's good.

As an actor, you use the things from yourself that you can apply to the character.

When you make a movie, everyone should leave their own personal problems at home. When they start bringing those to set, filming can be very difficult... You don't need any extra drama. Put the drama into the story, in the characters.

If you're an actor, always be true to your character. If you are not an actor, have character and always be true to yourself.