Martin Freeman (8 September 1971, Aldershot, Hampshire, England, UK) movies list and roles

Why does everyone have to pretend to be stupid and not know long words?

God, no. I don't do any of that shit [partying with celebrities]. I've got a stag weekend coming up and I've said I'm not doing anything mor...Show more »

God, no. I don't do any of that shit [partying with celebrities]. I've got a stag weekend coming up and I've said I'm not doing anything more than a few drinks. I won't have it. I'll go home and watch Antiques Roadshow (1997). Show less «

If I could get bands to come and play in my house, I'd like that. I've never been to a festival. I'm a creature of habit, mashed-potato comf...Show more »

If I could get bands to come and play in my house, I'd like that. I've never been to a festival. I'm a creature of habit, mashed-potato comfort, I like rugs. Our sofa's squishy. Maybe too squishy - it's hard to get up sometimes. Show less «

Most people have a passive relationship with music and clothes, with culture. But music was my first contact with anything creative. Music i...Show more »

Most people have a passive relationship with music and clothes, with culture. But music was my first contact with anything creative. Music is it, as far as I'm concerned. Show less «

Some people have that roar in their head, but I'm not sure I ever did. That live-fast-die-young thing. No one wants it really - Jimi Hendrix...Show more »

Some people have that roar in their head, but I'm not sure I ever did. That live-fast-die-young thing. No one wants it really - Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin - it's not good. I want to live with Amanda till I'm 70. I was never the kid that went all the way with naughtiness, never got caned or in serious trouble. I always knew when to pull back. Show less «

I don't think it was a surprise that I ended up as an actor, and it was anything but a disappointment. My parents gave me the knowledge that...Show more »

I don't think it was a surprise that I ended up as an actor, and it was anything but a disappointment. My parents gave me the knowledge that reading isn't a bad thing, and admitting to liking a painting doesn't make you an arse-bandit. And that wouldn't have been a problem either. Show less «

I'm not a practicing Catholic or I wouldn't be living unwed with a woman, and I don't think all poofs are going to hell, and I don't think e...Show more »

I'm not a practicing Catholic or I wouldn't be living unwed with a woman, and I don't think all poofs are going to hell, and I don't think everyone who's had an abortion is damned, most of my friends are atheists and I understand atheism, I get it, but I happen to be a theist. I believe in our answerableness to something else. Show less «

My mum was Labour-voting, but wanted us to know we were important. Basically, everyone's equal, but you, my children, are a bit better.

Once you've switched that switch [commitment], then, though you notice that other people are great, you're just not interested.

Half of us are partly German! Half our language and culture, generally, in Anglo-Saxon terms, is German.

I would wear a full-length cape if I could get away with it - I do love a good swirl in a fog.

I did a play once where a reviewer said, Martin Freeman is too nice to play a bad guy.' And I thought: 'Well, bad guys aren't always bad guy...Show more »

I did a play once where a reviewer said, Martin Freeman is too nice to play a bad guy.' And I thought: 'Well, bad guys aren't always bad guys, you know?' When I see someone play the obvious villain, I know it's false. Show less «

I can spot someone with similar fashion sense to me a mile off.

I'm a big believer that life changes as much as you want it to.

I think I'm less gloomy than I used to be - I've got a very supportive other half.

I'm not posh or common, I'm in between.

I think what 'The Hobbit' and Middle-earth deal in are quite universal and timeless themes of honor and love and friendship... so they're th...Show more »

I think what 'The Hobbit' and Middle-earth deal in are quite universal and timeless themes of honor and love and friendship... so they're things that do resonate with people. Show less «

My idea of a good night out is staying in.

I'm not particularly affable in real life, I have to tell you. I've got that side to me, of course, but that's not all I am.

I have a very extreme state of mind. Things are very black or very white.

To my mind there are not enough things that show the Nazis as human, as smart people, charismatic people, who are not inhuman naturally. But...Show more »

To my mind there are not enough things that show the Nazis as human, as smart people, charismatic people, who are not inhuman naturally. But who are able to be fantastically inhuman when they choose to be. Show less «

I don't want to sound like a grumpy old man, but nothing winds me up more than people saying, 'Chill out' to me when I'm irritated!

People misunderstand me.

There are lots of things that keep me awake at night, but work isn't one of them. I mean, no-one's going to die if someone doesn't like what...Show more »

There are lots of things that keep me awake at night, but work isn't one of them. I mean, no-one's going to die if someone doesn't like what I do. So I don't feel a great pressure. Show less «

I value being able to go into a record shop and people leaving me alone.

Any pigeonhole is something to be rebelled against.

I don't think anyone looks into their family tree and expects it to come up smelling of roses.

I think people just like seeing friendship. I think people like seeing people who just drive each other up the wall, but at same time, can't...Show more »

I think people just like seeing friendship. I think people like seeing people who just drive each other up the wall, but at same time, can't live without each other. Show less «

I like things that are simple, such as an alarm clock.

Michael Caine, Tom Courtenay and Al Pacino made me want to act. I've always been interested in men with a vulnerable side.

Like any friendship or marriage, familiarity breeds more contempt, and love, and everything.

There was very little drama and performance at my school, so I've never forgotten the people who did encourage me and I've thought whether i...Show more »

There was very little drama and performance at my school, so I've never forgotten the people who did encourage me and I've thought whether it would be a good idea to even get in touch with them and just say thanks, because they really opened a door for me mentally and emotionally - that's really important. Show less «

I've always loved Christmas and that's not really gone away from me from being a child to now. It's always a magical time and I'm unashamed ...Show more »

I've always loved Christmas and that's not really gone away from me from being a child to now. It's always a magical time and I'm unashamed in my love for Christmas. Show less «

I don't want to be poor, of course. But I try not to make that the guiding force behind whether I choose to do something or not.

Acting is the only thing I'm even vaguely good at and acting is something that I think I do know about.

I like the quiet life sometimes. I also love a bustling press conference sometimes as well. I love a 600 meter red carpet.

I am a fan of the Coen brothers. I'm not a fanatic. I'm a big admirer. They create unique worlds, and there is a real atmosphere to their fi...Show more »

I am a fan of the Coen brothers. I'm not a fanatic. I'm a big admirer. They create unique worlds, and there is a real atmosphere to their films. Not everyone can get that. That's a massive part of their appeal: you can recognize them. Like all the great directors or artists, you know it when you see it. Show less «

Sherlock (2010) is one of the biggest things I will do, ever - we could never have predicted that level of insanity around the series.

Disappointment is an endless wellspring of comedy inspiration.

In London we give ourselves a pat on the back, rightly, for not killing one another, for our prejudice being subtle rather than lethal.

I hate the fact that so much of our life is computerized rather than mechanized.

Name anything - high-definition TV, computer obsolescence - and I'm pretty much annoyed by it.

I'm one of the few people I know who believes in God.

What makes Shakespeare eternal is his grasp of psychology. He knew how to nail stuff about us as human beings.

I've got an overly developed sense of what selling out is, and I of course worry about it too much.

Humor is - how do I say this without sounding pompous - it's a huge part of my life.

I don't think it was a surprise that I ended up as an actor, and it was anything but a disappointment.

I'm geek royalty now.

Being a mod is more of a sensibility than a style.

I love home. I'd rather be at home than anywhere else.

I like uncertainty in roles, and I like uncertainty in art, really.

I don't write anything off without reading a script, and if it's a good one, I'll consider it, whether it's for $20 or a million dollars.

I love eating. I mean, I really, really love eating.

I think the hardest part about anything you do for 18 months is just keeping yourself together for 18 months.

I think the only directing I'd be any good at is theatre directing. It's the only thing I can see myself doing.

I'm afraid I don't have a very pragmatic or unromantic view of props. I don't imbue them with any great sense of mystery or anything.

I wanted to be an actor because I saw Dog Day Afternoon (1975) you know what I mean?

I'm always interested with other actors in what their process is, and are they still interested in acting, as opposed to being a star.

I think the world needs to see more of my face.

When I wear jeans I want to look like a man, not a child.

If you are a plumber, you can work on a shed, or you can work on a mansion. It's just scale.

Your slippers last a lot longer in your bedroom. On a film set, they do get very scuffed up.

When people bully us, we are complicit in it in some way. We do allow it to happen to some extent.

I've always been attracted to darkness.

With superheroes and comics and fantasy and Sci-Fi being absolutely the popular currency in cinema, it's like people have said in endless ma...Show more »

With superheroes and comics and fantasy and Sci-Fi being absolutely the popular currency in cinema, it's like people have said in endless magazines, it's the revenge of the geeks and all that. There's some truth in that. Show less «

I've got a stag weekend coming up and I've said I'm not doing anything more than a few drinks. I won't have it. I'll go home and watch Antiq...Show more »

I've got a stag weekend coming up and I've said I'm not doing anything more than a few drinks. I won't have it. I'll go home and watch Antiques Roadshow. Show less «

On Billy Bob Thornton: I love watching Billy Bob, just as a punter anyway. I like his work. But working with him is really easy and really s...Show more »

On Billy Bob Thornton: I love watching Billy Bob, just as a punter anyway. I like his work. But working with him is really easy and really straight-forward. He's immediately good. He doesn't have to work up to it. He doesn't make your life difficult. He listens. He's a very good listener, in terms of his acting. Show less «

I've been doing interviews for years, and in all that time, I've virtually never read one and gone, 'Yep, factually and tonally that's exact...Show more »

I've been doing interviews for years, and in all that time, I've virtually never read one and gone, 'Yep, factually and tonally that's exactly what happened.' Pretty much never. Show less «