"The great thing about the business is how Darwinian it is. We have to swim or die - if you are found wanting over a period of time, you've either got to change what you're doing or find something else to do"
About this Quote
The subtext is almost a dare: don’t confuse talent with tenure. Soderbergh came up in a system where a breakout (sex, lies, and videotape) could mint you overnight, but he’s also lived through the hangover - shifting studio appetites, the collapse of mid-budget adult dramas, the algorithmic turn in distribution. His career has been a running experiment in adaptation: bouncing between prestige and genre, theatrical and streaming, big ensembles and iPhone minimalism. So when he says "found wanting over a period of time", he’s talking about the slow, unglamorous attrition that eats most careers: a couple underperformers, a shift in taste, a new executive, a younger voice.
There’s a pragmatic edge to the kicker: "change what you're doing or find something else to do". It’s not inspirational; it’s labor advice. The intent is to demystify the business while smuggling in a philosophy of creative resilience: evolution isn’t betrayal, it’s how you keep making anything at all.
Quote Details
| Topic | Business |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Soderbergh, Steven. (2026, January 17). The great thing about the business is how Darwinian it is. We have to swim or die - if you are found wanting over a period of time, you've either got to change what you're doing or find something else to do. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-great-thing-about-the-business-is-how-82189/
Chicago Style
Soderbergh, Steven. "The great thing about the business is how Darwinian it is. We have to swim or die - if you are found wanting over a period of time, you've either got to change what you're doing or find something else to do." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-great-thing-about-the-business-is-how-82189/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"The great thing about the business is how Darwinian it is. We have to swim or die - if you are found wanting over a period of time, you've either got to change what you're doing or find something else to do." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-great-thing-about-the-business-is-how-82189/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
