"Every actor I ever meet goes, 'Ultimately I plan on having my own company and write and direct,' but yes, I too would love to write and direct a movie. I want to do a play, too. I want to do it all"
About this Quote
Schwartzman is gently roasting a whole ecosystem of ambition while admitting he’s fully infected by it. The opener - “Every actor I ever meet goes…” - is doing double duty: it’s an eye-roll at the industry’s default humblebrag (acting as a “stepping stone” to the real power jobs) and a subtle confession that he knows the script because he’s recited it himself. The comedy lands in the pivot: “but yes, I too…” He punctures the pose of above-it-all cynicism by stepping right into the same desire, which makes the line feel honest rather than performative.
The subtext is about status and control. In Hollywood, “write and direct” isn’t just a creative aspiration; it’s a bid to stop being interpreted and start being listened to. Actors are hired bodies in other people’s visions; writer-directors are authors. Schwartzman’s phrasing, though, keeps it human. He doesn’t frame it as mastery or legacy; he frames it as appetite: “I want to do it all.” That reads less like empire-building and more like restless curiosity - the kind you’d expect from someone who’s worked with auteur directors and absorbed that sensibility.
Context matters: Schwartzman comes from a film-and-music lineage and built a career in indie-leaning, director-driven projects. He’s seen firsthand how identity gets shaped by collaborators, and this is him reaching for a fuller authorship without pretending the impulse is rare. The line works because it’s self-aware ambition: sincere, slightly embarrassed, still hungry.
The subtext is about status and control. In Hollywood, “write and direct” isn’t just a creative aspiration; it’s a bid to stop being interpreted and start being listened to. Actors are hired bodies in other people’s visions; writer-directors are authors. Schwartzman’s phrasing, though, keeps it human. He doesn’t frame it as mastery or legacy; he frames it as appetite: “I want to do it all.” That reads less like empire-building and more like restless curiosity - the kind you’d expect from someone who’s worked with auteur directors and absorbed that sensibility.
Context matters: Schwartzman comes from a film-and-music lineage and built a career in indie-leaning, director-driven projects. He’s seen firsthand how identity gets shaped by collaborators, and this is him reaching for a fuller authorship without pretending the impulse is rare. The line works because it’s self-aware ambition: sincere, slightly embarrassed, still hungry.
Quote Details
| Topic | Movie |
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