I was going to be a Marine before I was going to be an actor. I was really serious about joining the Marine Corps.
Steve Zahn
I remember seeing my sister in a play when I was very young, and I remember telling my folks, 'I want to do that.'
I think, a lot of times in a big city, you're working even when you're not.
I've never watched an episode of 'Star Trek.' For real.
The beauty of acting is you just get lost in it. You play the character, and you hope that it works.
I've done movies where they didn't have enough money to have trailers.
I was in high school, and I was the guy that always got cast in the school play. Theater is huge in high school in Minnesota, and I knew that I was very good at that, and gifted, and I was 'the guy,' but it still wasn't something I ever thought of as 'a job' or something that one could do professionally.
I still really love acting. I find it really challenging. And I really love film; it's a lot of fun.
I remember seeing 'Les Miserables' with the original cast - this was in '87 - and I was blown away by it.
I love 'Safe Men.' Now it's getting all this culty kind of - it just came out on DVD. That was awesome. I read that script, I never laughed so hard in my life.
I never wanted the business to dictate my life. I'm sure I've sacrificed and missed out on a lot of stuff, but I don't know what that stuff is, so I just raised kids, and I wanted to be around for that.
I'm not a sci-fi kind of guy, to be honest.
I moved to New York to do theater, and I got cast in a play that was funny, and then I was the funny guy. I did a movie that was funny, and then I was the funny guy.
I lived in Minnesota in a small town.
I'm not a leading guy.
I feed horses and goats and sheep all day and, once in a while, come and talk about movies.
I have raised beds, perennial beds, cut flower beds. I have an island on a pond that's just covered in peonies. I have an herb garden, tons of vegetables, raspberries. I have everything. I'm a green guy.
I met my wife in 1990 when I was on the national tour of 'Bye, Bye Birdie.'
Any director who's also acted understands the fact that every person has a different process and has to be approached differently.
People got to know me very gradually. It was little things. It's still like that. 'That Thing you Do!' was a big thing. It's always been very gradual. Like I say, people still ask me if I'm still acting. 'I've seen all your movies. What are you doing now?' Ha ha!
You still really fight for good parts. It never stops. It's never a breeze. The people at the top of their game work as hard as the people at the bottom.
I gravitate to ensemble comedy.
I love 'Shattered Glass.' It's one of my favorite movies. I think it's just brilliant.
I always gravitate toward the humor in something.
I just planted the family vegetables yesterday. You name it, I grow it.
I don't care if you've just won an Oscar, you still have to campaign for parts.
I've never had the luxury - or the nightmare - of having something just blow up and be this huge success and then have everything thrown at you. Being 'the best friend' lessens the responsibility, 'cause I can still go do another movie after something that doesn't do well.
My parents were reasoned and deep thinkers. My dad is an intellectual and a literary man.
I'm huge on spring and summer gardening. I'm really proud of my perennial beds. That's a passion of mine.
I love general history. That's all I read really. I don't read novels, I read history. I love it. I live in an area that's really rich in Civil War history. I live in Kentucky on a farm. A lot of revolution, a lot of military history I love.
Andy Serkis is one of the best actors I have ever worked with. He might be the best actor I have ever worked with.
I'm theater trained.
I'm a good dad; I spend a lot of time with my kids.
Most people laugh at situations rather than a tagline anyway.
I'm always attracted to the vulnerable character more than I am the superhero.
Let me tell you something, planes and kids... I've got a 3 and 1 year old, I don't wish that on anybody.
You work with stand-up comedians or you work with somebody in theater, you work with somebody from 'Star Search' or 'Survivor' or a kid, it constantly changes how you play with people.
I've had more people come up to me about 'Saving Silverman' than anything else. That and 'That Thing You Do!' But 'Saving Silverman' is the one I get most often. And I love that.
PlayStation 3 is another form of meditation. Come on, when you're on set, all day? That's what I do in my trailer, I just play PlayStation 3.
It goes all the way back to 'Psycho.' Movies with twists like that are memorable because they're so simple.
Film is a strange thing.
When I was younger, you get pigeonholed in parts, which is understandable.
I don't have a publicist.
My dad was the chaplain at Mankato State University, and my mom worked in the bookstore. We lived just off-campus. Then we moved to the suburbs of Minneapolis, to New Hope, which is where I went to high school.
I like to fish. I'm an outdoorsman. I love to hunt and fish.
I never expect anything; I just go make a movie. I do the best I can, and whatever happens, happens.
