For a while, I was only being sent fat-girl parts. Seriously? Sometimes I feel like I'm making some kind of radical statement because I'm a size 6.
— Melanie Lynskey
I don't think I've played a lot of crazy people.
I don't know, I love it when I see movies with people who are not super familiar to me or people who I've seen in smaller parts who are suddenly getting a chance to do something bigger. For me that's very exciting.
I really like 'Girls.' I know everybody does, but I love 'Girls.'
There's not much of a follow-your-dreams kind of vibe in New Zealand or my family.
Even when I'm reading a script where I'm supposed to be looking at the lead role, I'll find myself gravitating toward some small weirdo in a few scenes instead. I'm very instinctive like that and I love the challenge of not having a lot of time to create someone who feels real.
I'll audition for something and then the feedback has been, 'The director wants you, the creative people want you, but the studio is saying no.' It's depressing, but I understand. People are investing a lot of money and they want somewhat of a guarantee; they want someone who's been on the cover of magazines.
I was a kid who didn't have a lot of self-esteem.
The interesting thing about acting is using all your own stuff and having some kind of personal catharsis while you're working.
I was a very independent teenager.
I guess I've never really had a great desire to be a leading lady, or be seen as an ingenue.
I read every single review, because I love film criticism and I'm interested.
I've definitely had times in my life where I've been depressed and not able to do anything at all.
If I could be working every day, I would be.
I feel like any actor should always be thinking about how to serve the story. The thing to be cautious of is trying to make too much of your 'moment,' or whatever. The story is a lot bigger than you, and you're there to help it along.
I think filmmakers are always interested in getting the best actor that they can find, the person who's the most right for it.
To take a job just so I can go on a fancy vacation doesn't really seem worth it.
I know my mother-in-law would drive two hours to go see a movie that I'm in.
I feel so grateful when I see a movie and there's a woman who looks somewhat like me. I'm like, 'Thank you, Samantha Morton!' You know, a woman who feels like a human being. That means so much to me.
I think that for me as a person, it's very easy for me to hear, 'It's too difficult.' Or, 'You're not easy to cast.' And, 'You're not beautiful,' and this and that.
I feel like a character actress - it's where I'm comfortable.
I like to play the grey areas in life - that's the most uncomfortable place to be. Nobody likes to be in that in-between state where there don't know what's going to happen. There's a lot of tension in that, and a lot of stuff to play with - where it's uncomfortable and awkward and sad and scary.
Usually when I am in a movie that is about to come out, if people don't love it, that is fine - I can handle it.
I've done a gazillion readings that have gone on to be movies that are made without me.
I know a lot of actors have all these expectations and believe that one thing should lead to another thing, and that's probably the right way to build a career. I don't know what's wrong with me - I just don't think like that!
New Zealanders can be a little hostile.
I feel like I'm kind of faking something if I'm talking as myself and putting on an accent.
Everybody goes through challenges. There's stuff that happens personally that's challenging, stuff in work that's difficult, disappointments that happen.
People in New Zealand go out of their way to not be impressed by things.
I feel weird when I go to the movies and everybody's faces are perfect.
If a movie is received badly, and I'm in only one scene of it, I still feel responsible. I feel like it was my fault at all times. If people were like, 'This movie sucks!' I'd be like, 'Well, that's because I'm terrible.'
I was at university and I was studying modern drama and studying English, and I just was like, 'I don't wanna be in this place. I wanna be acting.'
I'm not one of those people who can cry on cue. If I have to cry in an audition, I'm like, 'Okay, let me see what I can do.'
I guess I have a strong constitution.
I love festivals because I feel like I'm more of a movie fan than a person who's in the film industry.
I used to write stories and poetry, but for some reason I have it in my head that if I'm going to write, I have to write a script.
The acting life is different than I thought it would be. I love it - it's actually a lot less pressure than I thought it would be.
