--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The best actor is the man who can do…" description: "\"The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well…\" — Alfred Hitchcock" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg" --- # The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well… ![“The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well…” quote by Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg) > “The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well…” [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Excellence in simplicity means mastering the basics before attempting complexity. **In simple terms:** Master basics to excel. Key Takeaway Focus on fundamentals first. Themes mastery simplicity craftsmanship Mood thoughtful instructive Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - acting workshops - skill training - creative writing - performance art Key Concepts skill development minimalism Questions to Reflect On - When should you move beyond basics? - How do you balance simplicity with artistic depth? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on basics may limit creative experimentation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Actors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) ## Related quotes > [I would almost say that the best screen actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/i-would-almost-say-that-the-best-screen-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [When a man is extremely lonely, he starts discovering himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-tripathi/when-a-man-is-extremely-lonely-he-starts-discovering-himself/) [Pankaj Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-tripathi/) > [As I look at President Bush, I think he will ultimately be judged as a man of extremely high character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-franks/as-i-look-at-president-bush-i-think-he-will-ultimately-be-judged-as-a/) [Tommy Franks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-franks/) > [Sometimes you choose the wrong actor, he could be the best actor ever, but hes not cast in the right part then it doesnt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-marceau/sometimes-you-choose-the-wrong-actor-he-could-be-the-best-actor-ever/) [Sophie Marceau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-marceau/) > [If you held a pistol at my head, I couldn't tell you who they're going to vote for Best Actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-caine/if-you-held-a-pistol-at-my-head-i-couldn-t-tell-you-who-they-re-going/) [Michael Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-caine/) > [I knew I could never be an actor as a man. It just doesn't work, you know? And so when I was doing drag,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candis-cayne/i-knew-i-could-never-be-an-actor-as-a-man-it-just-doesn-t-work-you/) [Candis Cayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candis-cayne/) > [If I could go back, I think I would be a rock star instead of an actor, man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-chon/if-i-could-go-back-i-think-i-would-be-a-rock-star-instead-of-an-actor/) [Justin Chon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-chon/) > [There's nothing wrong with being an actor, if that's what a man wants. But there's everything wrong with achieving an exalted status, simply because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sterling-hayden/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-being-an-actor-if-that-s-what-a-man-wants/) [Sterling Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sterling-hayden/) > [What we consider typical of the male is a question I ask myself quite often - it's relevant to my life as an actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliot-cowan/what-we-consider-typical-of-the-male-is-a-question-i-ask-myself-quite/) [Elliot Cowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliot-cowan/) > [In Hollywood the man who cleans your pool is an actor. The man who sells you your copy of Variety is an actor. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/in-hollywood-the-man-who-cleans-your-pool-is-an-actor-the-man-who/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [We had no idea, you're like, an amazing actor, man. -Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/21-jump-street/we-had-no-idea-you-re-like-an-amazing-actor-man-schmidt/) 21 Jump Street > [There's nothing wrong with being an actor, if that's what a man wants. But there's everything wrong with achieving an exalted status simply because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sterling-hayden/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-being-an-actor-if-that-s-what-a-man-wants-2/) [Sterling Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sterling-hayden/) > [We had no idea, you're like, an amazing actor, man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-hill/we-had-no-idea-you-re-like-an-amazing-actor-man/) [Jonah Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-hill/) > [Living in somebody else's pain for an actor man, it's actually nice when you get to feel that kind of emotion. That's what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-teller/living-in-somebody-else-s-pain-for-an-actor-man-it-s-actually-nice/) [Miles Teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-teller/) > [The first time I got paid as an actor was for 'Man of La Mancha.' So 'Don Quixote' has always been a thing for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/the-first-time-i-got-paid-as-an-actor-was-for-man-of-la-mancha-so-don/) [Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/) ## More by Alfred Hitchcock > [Revenge is sweet and not fattening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/revenge-is-sweet-and-not-fattening/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [There is nothing quite so good as burial at sea. It is simple, tidy, and not very incriminating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/there-is-nothing-quite-so-good-as-burial-at-sea-it-is-simple-tidy-and/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [Someone once told me that every minute a murder occurs, so I don't want to waste your time, I know you want to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/someone-once-told-me-that-every-minute-a-murder-occurs-so-i-don-t/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [If it's a good movie, the sound could go off and the audience would still have a perfectly clear idea of what was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/if-it-s-a-good-movie-the-sound-could-go-off-and-the-audience-would/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [When accepting the American Film Institute Life Achievement award: I beg permission to mention by name only four people who have given me the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/when-accepting-the-american-film-institute-life-achievement-award-i/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [I am scared easily, here is a list of my adrenaline - production: 1: small children, 2: policemen, 3: high places, 4: that my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/i-am-scared-easily-here-is-a-list-of-my-adrenaline-production-1-small/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [Film your murders like love scenes, and film your love scenes like murders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/film-your-murders-like-love-scenes-and-film-your-love-scenes-like/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [I'm a writer and, therefore, automatically a suspicious character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/i-m-a-writer-and-therefore-automatically-a-suspicious-character/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [For me, the cinema is not a slice of life, but a piece of cake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/for-me-the-cinema-is-not-a-slice-of-life-but-a-piece-of-cake/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [I am to provide the public with beneficial shocks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/i-am-to-provide-the-public-with-beneficial-shocks/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [One never knows the ending. One has to die to know exactly what happens after death, although Catholics have their hopes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/one-never-knows-the-ending-one-has-to-die-to-know-exactly-what/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [I've become a body of films, not a man, I am all those films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/i-ve-become-a-body-of-films-not-a-man-i-am-all-those-films/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [A woman who spends all day washing and cooking and ironing doesn't want to go to the movies to watch a film about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/a-woman-who-spends-all-day-washing-and-cooking-and-ironing-doesn-t/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [Some of our most exquisite murders have been domestic, performed with tenderness in simple, homey places like the kitchen table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/some-of-our-most-exquisite-murders-have-been-domestic-performed-with/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [All love scenes started on the set are continued in the dressing room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/all-love-scenes-started-on-the-set-are-continued-in-the-dressing-room/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) [Explore all 140 Alfred Hitchcock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well…", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alfred Hitchcock" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-nothing-extremely-well/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-nothing-extremely-well/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/alfred-hitchcock-3063_actor_the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-not_2519176.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The best actor is the man who can do nothing extremely well…” — Alfred Hitchcock", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alfred Hitchcock", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The best actor is the man...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-nothing-extremely-well/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/the-best-actor-is-the-man-who-can-do-nothing-extremely-well/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```