Hollywood has a history of raising expectations beyond Washington's reach of appealing to the very American desire to mythologize political leaders particularly the president.
People really do make the assumption that I had some weirdo Hollywood upbringing but my parents are incredibly down-to-earth people who worked really hard to raise us in a way that was health.
Hollywood is a cross between a health farm a recreation center and an insane asylum. It's a company town and I happen to like the company!
In Hollywood if you don't have happiness you send out for it.
As a bookish child in Calcutta I used to thrill to the adventures of bad girls whose pursuit of happiness swept them outside the bounds of social decency. Tess of the d'Urbervilles Emma Bovary and Anna Karenina lived large in my imagination. The naughty girls of Hollywood films flirted and knew how to drive.
I had three points I wanted to make: That not everybody in Hollywood is on the left that Obama has broken a lot of the promises he made when he took office and that the people should feel free to get rid of any politician who's not doing a good job. But I didn't make up my mind exactly what I was going to say until I said it.
I don't know if high society is different in other cities but in Hollywood important people can't stand to be invited someplace that isn't full of other important people. They don't mind a few unfamous people being present because they make good listeners.
Hollywood films have become a cesspool of formula and it's up to us to try to change it... I feel like a preacher! But it's really true. I feel personally responsible for the future of American cinema. Me personally.
Hollywood has its own way of telling stories. I was just telling stories that I was familiar with. And it's what I want to do in the future: I want to take my audio cinema and put it on the screen.
You know what? I never really factor Hollywood into anything. I'm a black actor so I can't really control what Hollywood thinks. I gotta go do my thing and my jokes have got to be funny. Whatever I do has got to be great.