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Happiness Quote by Kiefer Sutherland

"I think the most attractive thing is a sense of humour. If someone can make you laugh, you've gotten a lot out of the way"

About this Quote

Sutherland’s line flatters humor not as a cute bonus, but as a social accelerator: if you can make someone laugh, you’ve effectively skipped the stiff, security-check phase of getting to know them. “Attractive” here isn’t about looks or even charm in the conventional sense; it’s about relief. Laughter signals safety, shared reference points, and an ability to handle the awkwardness that usually clogs early connection.

The shrewd part is the phrase “you’ve gotten a lot out of the way.” It frames intimacy as logistical. Humor becomes a kind of emotional shorthand, a test that collapses the usual vetting process: Are we compatible? Are you kind? Can you read a room? Can you handle tension without making it worse? In a single laugh, those questions get provisional answers. The subtext is slightly wary, too. Sutherland isn’t idealizing romance; he’s describing a strategy for navigating it. If you’ve lived long enough in public-facing worlds - or played enough high-stress roles - you learn that people are complicated, impressions are fragile, and time is limited. Comedy is a shortcut to authenticity because it’s hard to fake under pressure; timing and self-awareness tend to leak the truth.

As an actor, Sutherland also understands performance, and that gives the quote bite. He’s essentially admitting that attraction often begins with a well-delivered moment. But he’s not praising slickness. He’s praising the kind of humor that clears the air, dismantles ego, and makes space for something real to start.

Quote Details

TopicRomantic
SourceHelp us find the source
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Citation Formats

APA Style (7th ed.)
Sutherland, Kiefer. (2026, January 15). I think the most attractive thing is a sense of humour. If someone can make you laugh, you've gotten a lot out of the way. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-the-most-attractive-thing-is-a-sense-of-161092/

Chicago Style
Sutherland, Kiefer. "I think the most attractive thing is a sense of humour. If someone can make you laugh, you've gotten a lot out of the way." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-the-most-attractive-thing-is-a-sense-of-161092/.

MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I think the most attractive thing is a sense of humour. If someone can make you laugh, you've gotten a lot out of the way." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-the-most-attractive-thing-is-a-sense-of-161092/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.

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About the Author

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Kiefer Sutherland (born December 21, 1966) is a Actor from Canada.

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