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People Quotes by Ian Mckellen

38 People quotes by Ian Mckellen

All People quotes Ian Mckellen’s page

Ian McKellen points out that young people often look up to older ones and that fame can shape how strangers recognize you. He talks about the desire for 3D images and the challenge of clear storytelling. He also urges honesty in public moments and mentions health worries.

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There's lots of Tolkien that must be confusing to people.

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You might be surprised by how interested young people are in older people.

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Capitalism offers you freedom, but far from giving people freedom, it enslaves them.

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People on television have trouble with fame because audiences think they're their mates.

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I'm dead against the idea that you should try to "cure" people of being gay.

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I don't think many people will re-read 'The Da Vinci Code.'

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It's only fair that stable gay relationships of long standing should have the same rights and responsibilities as married couples. I know…

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Acting is no longer about lying. It's now about revealing the truth. People are at ease with me now. Honesty is the…

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I don't really like being with people my own age for long periods, because all we talk about is our decrepitude, how…

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I have heard of people dying from prostate cancer, and they are the unlucky ones, the people who didn't know they had…

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That was the big effect Lord of the Rings had on me. It was discovering New Zealand. And even more precious were…

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What I particularly like about Broadway is the camaraderie and the friendship of other people in other shows. Everybody knows you're opening…

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You see people in Hollywood trying to make blockbuster after blockbuster, but it's not possible. There's some god up there saying, 'You…

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The thing you notice here after America is how refreshingly ordinary people look, because they haven't had their chin wrapped around the…

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Establishing the rights for gay people to be married would cost the Australian government nothing financially and would gain for you worldwide…

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Before acting, I wanted to become a journalist. I also toyed with the idea of being a chef - but that's only…

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The demographic of our audience is young. It also contains a high proportion of black, Jewish and gay people, who have all…

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If you've been in a film that's seen by millions and millions and millions of people, you're more likely to be recognized…

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The huge difference in my lifetime is that you can just go up to somebody and make a pass. You couldn't do…

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I have been reluctant to lobby on other issues I most care about - nuclear weapons (against), religion (atheist), capital punishment (anti),…

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I've played an awful lot of people that other people would call villains, but that isn't a very helpful attitude to have…

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There are some tremendous actors in the U.K. who have been knighted, and I've spent much of my life admiring many of…

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Will I miss Gandalf? Well, I don't miss him, because people are constantly coming up to me mentioning him and talking about…

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I quite like it when I'm on the Tube and people offer me their seat. Sometimes I take it. The other day…

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There are people who've enjoyed my work in the theater, and they let me know that it was special for them. I'm…

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The battle going on over gay marriage in America reveals an awful lot. The Bible belt - people hate gay people. Because…

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If you get criticized, good - I don't think people get criticized enough. People talk behind your back and they criticize you,…

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Ever since the invention of the camera, people have been trying to create 3D, because we see things in 3D, and everyone's…

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To know you are in the company with people who love and care for each other, as well as for whatever they…

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The whole atmosphere of the book, the tone of 'The Hobbit,' is of a kid's adventure story, told in the first person…

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People who are truly horrible are often the most interesting people in the room. You look at them and just say, 'Why?'

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I have got prostate cancer, and I have to keep monitoring that. It's no problem, it's under control and I'm very cool…

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I used to comfort myself when I became an actor that it was a useful job, entertaining people. And it was important…

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As for the clarity of the 48 frames, I've heard people say that it looks odd, it's too demanding, there's too much…

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If I was on a march at the moment I would be saying to everyone: Be honest with each other. Admit there…

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When you grumble about a taxi being dirty, people your own age will absolutely agree with you, whereas younger people say, 'You…

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Because I was in the business of translating the 'X-Men' from the very successful comics, and taking the most popular book of…

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I tend to discourage people from calling me 'Sir Ian,' because I don't like being separated out from the rest of the…

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More by Ian Mckellen

I've always longed for the theatre and acting to be popular. No actor wants to play to an empty house. We only do it…

It's my impression that I've done every job that I've been asked to do.

I'm fortunate to be famous for two rather imposing characters like Magneto and Gandalf.

Tolkien is as good as Dickens at sketching a scene.

If you are playing King Lear you are the centre of attention anyway. You don't need to draw attention to yourself. It's all laid…

Godot is whatever it is in life that you are waiting for: 'I'm waiting to win the lottery. I'm waiting to fall in love'.…

I'm only an actor. I'm not a writer. I'm not going to leave any legacy. All I've ever done is learn the lines and…

I'd never read 'Lord of the Rings' until I was asked to play Gandalf, so I didn't really know it was a frightfully famous…

You might be surprised by how interested young people are in older people.

The strength of British theatre should be that these actors in their middle years know what they're doing and are good at it. Not…

Until I came out, my acting was all about disguise, and thereafter it became about telling the truth.

Elijah looks angelic but his beauty of spirit is what makes his Frodo leap out of the screen. Unalloyed goodness is one of the…

'The Lego Movie?' I've never heard of it.

When I appeared in 'Coronation Street,' I lived in Manchester and enjoyed it very much.

Before acting, I wanted to become a journalist. I also toyed with the idea of being a chef - but that's only when people…