"Playing a character who's dealing not only with a superpower but having a normal relationship is easy to associate with, because I feel that everyone has been through it"
About this Quote
The subtext is about relatability as currency. Superhero films can feel like mythology with product placement; actors are trained to insist the story is “really about” something familiar. Ashmore reaches for the broadest bridge possible - “everyone has been through it” - which is obviously not true in any literal sense, but emotionally strategic. He’s trying to collapse the distance between viewer and character by describing power as an exaggerated version of ordinary pressure: hiding parts of yourself, managing expectations, negotiating intimacy while carrying a secret you can’t quite put down.
Context matters: Ashmore’s career is tied to ensemble superhero storytelling (most notably the X-Men era), where the mutant metaphor already frames power as difference - adolescence, identity, stigma. His comment aligns with that tradition while keeping it light: no thesis about oppression, just the friction of wanting a “normal” relationship when your life isn’t. It works because it flatters the audience’s self-recognition and reframes spectacle as emotion with better lighting.
Quote Details
| Topic | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Ashmore, Shawn. (2026, January 15). Playing a character who's dealing not only with a superpower but having a normal relationship is easy to associate with, because I feel that everyone has been through it. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/playing-a-character-whos-dealing-not-only-with-a-153281/
Chicago Style
Ashmore, Shawn. "Playing a character who's dealing not only with a superpower but having a normal relationship is easy to associate with, because I feel that everyone has been through it." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/playing-a-character-whos-dealing-not-only-with-a-153281/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Playing a character who's dealing not only with a superpower but having a normal relationship is easy to associate with, because I feel that everyone has been through it." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/playing-a-character-whos-dealing-not-only-with-a-153281/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.





