Michael Pitt

[on his director, Bernardo Bertolucci]: There are two kinds of directors: There's the kind where two plus two equals four, and you have to help them figure it out. And then there's the kind that throws you in a room, locks the door, sets the house on fire and films it. Show less «

All these directors who do different locations forget that one room can be shot from a million different angles and a million different ways. When I direct a movie, I'm going to use that. Show less «

[on The Dreamers (2003)]: I was nervous for the sex scenes. It's tough for an American actor, because it can be looked upon very badly. It's a serious risk to take in your career. It's risky with the studios and with the American public. It's looked down upon in American culture at a serious level. It could be perceived not as work but as pornography. Every time I was nervous about it, I would remind myself that possibly I was going to be a part of something that was going to change those attitudes. I don't agree with those values at all. It's totally fine showing someone getting their head blown off in America and you can't show the human body. I think that shows something about the culture. Show less «

I think in some ways you learn more from the things you don't like than the things you do. What you want, and what you don't want.

I just do movies I like. I mean, I do movies I would want to go see.

You know, people want someone to tell them the answer. They want a friend, or a teacher, or a parent, but above all I guess they just want to know. And the truth is you can't tell them, and that's a hard thing to deal with. And it's easy to get wrapped up in the idea that this person knows, that he will tell me what I need to know, what I need to live, because he means a lot to me. Show less «

Movie stars get paid these ridiculous amounts of money, I don't know if they deserve it. But I think what they're really getting paid for is not the work but all the other stuff. Show less «

There's this double standard with nudity. You can show a woman's full anatomy, but it's threatening and uncomfortable with guys. Gay, straight, bi or whatever, these particular people who run the country are afraid to see the beauty in things that aren't necessarily what they think is right or whatever. Show less «

(On getting fired as an extra on Flawless) I was there with my friends and they wanted these two punk rock guys to be standing in this elevator while Robert De Niro ran in, or something. Joel Schumacher picked us, which meant we were going to get paid like two or three hundred dollars more, which at that time meant that we had our rent for the month, so it was a big deal. We were standing in the East Village with all the extras, next to a prostitute and a little person, talking about the money we were going to get. So someone-one of the extras-had a really great idea and said, "We should celebrate," and they sparked up a joint. So we're standing there on the corner in front of this church and we're smoking a joint and we're excited, then all of a sudden five undercover cops came out of nowhere and threw us against the wall and they started arresting us. And so they're handcuffing us as Joel Schumacher walks by, and we're like, "Look, we'll be out in twenty-four hours and we can be right back here tomorrow." As the cops were pulling us into the car, he was just sort of like, "That's it-sorry, boys." So we asked the cops if we could at least sign the waiver so we could be paid for the day's work, and they said no and took us to jail. Show less «

(On landing Boardwalk Empire) They sent me the pilot and I read it and I started working on it. I went to a big casting call, where you wait in the waiting room and you put the scene down on tape, and they called me a month later. I had been in California trying to find a job and I met with [Boardwalk producer] Terry Winter, and when I came back they said I could audition for Marty [Scorsese]. I was a bit nervous, and before I went in for the audition I got dressed up-put on a suit and stuff-because it was 1920s-and I went in and I met Marty, who was staying at the Waldorf-Astoria. He had been kind of homeless for a while and he was staying in this giant suite, and I went in and we talked and I did this scene, and he said, "That's good, but you should do it angrier," and so I did, but he said, again, "That's good, but I think a bit more angry," so I did it again even angrier and asked, "So is that good?" and he said, "Yeah, more angry!" So I went to the corner of the room and started screaming at the top of my lungs, "You motherfucker!" and punching the wall. I asked him, "Is that good?" and he said, "I think it's a good place to start." Show less «

I remember when I was a kid looking at different types of film and really examining the grains of them. I remember even looking at the ink streaks. Show less «