--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you're playing a fictional character…" description: "\"When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and confusing and kind of messes with your values a bit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png" --- # When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the… ![“When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and confusing and kind of messes with your values a bit.” quote by Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png) > “When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and confusing and kind of messes with your values a bit.” [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Portraying a fictional persona while navigating real-life situations creates cognitive dissonance, blurring personal values and reality. **In simple terms:** Acting as a character can distort one's own moral compass. Key Takeaway Fictional roles can conflict with real-world ethics. Themes identity cognitive dissonance ethics performance self-awareness Mood conflicted introspective Type observational personal When to use this quote - actors on set - public figures in interviews - role-play therapy - online avatars Key Concepts role immersion value conflict Practical Applications - self-reflection techniques - boundary-setting strategies Questions to Reflect On - How do you separate character traits from personal beliefs? - What safeguards can protect your values while role-playing? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Fictional character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fictional-character/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [If you're playing a fictional character, you can create a character, you can sort of take certain liberties. And when you're playing a real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-wahlberg/if-you-re-playing-a-fictional-character-you-can-create-a-character/) [Donnie Wahlberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-wahlberg/) > [When you play a real person, you feel a sense of responsibility that obviously you don't feel when you're playing a fictional character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-dormer/when-you-play-a-real-person-you-feel-a-sense-of-responsibility-that/) [Natalie Dormer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-dormer/) > [If there's a role you're playing and there's a great deal of material to explore because the person was real then it's a completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-thompson/if-there-s-a-role-you-re-playing-and-there-s-a-great-deal-of-material/) [Emma Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-thompson/) > [“Not only that, the terrain was also all over the place. There were so many different levels that it made it difficult and confusing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-the-noob/not-only-that-the-terrain-was-also-all-over-the-place-there-were-so/) Steve the Noob > [Whether you're a man or a woman, life can be very, very difficult and confusing and desperate, and it's life-enhancing to know that somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-elliott/whether-you-re-a-man-or-a-woman-life-can-be-very-very-difficult-and/) [Marianne Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-elliott/) > [“fictional character, this seemed to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/fictional-character-this-seemed-to/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [It's all fun and games until someone insults your favorite fictional character...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-all-fun-and-games-until-someone-insults-your-favorite-fictional/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I do like to embed a fictional character firmly in an occupation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-lively/i-do-like-to-embed-a-fictional-character-firmly-in-an-occupation/) [Penelope Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-lively/) > [“Meaning, yes -- I don't really exist except on the page or in the back of your brain. But if you think it's weird…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-michel-sullivan/meaning-yes-i-don-t-really-exist-except-on-the-page-or-in-the-back-of/) Kyle Michel Sullivan > [“She was so plain. Would it kill you to wear skirts more, he had said to her. Would it really hurt you? He was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-sefton/she-was-so-plain-would-it-kill-you-to-wear-skirts-more-he-had-said-to/) Meg Sefton > [As soon as I started reading, I found myself drawn to fictional character's homes as much as I was to the characters themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-kay-andrews/as-soon-as-i-started-reading-i-found-myself-drawn-to-fictional/) [Mary Kay Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-kay-andrews/) > [Writers are magpies, and we collect details about people and we use them for fictional characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-leavitt/writers-are-magpies-and-we-collect-details-about-people-and-we-use/) [Caroline Leavitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-leavitt/) > [As far as I am concerned, Don Quixote is the most metal fictional character that I know. Single handed, he is trying to change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lee/as-far-as-i-am-concerned-don-quixote-is-the-most-metal-fictional/) [Christopher Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lee/) > [“When you “lose yourself” inside the world of a fictional character while reading a story, you may actually end up changing your own behavior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-marselle/when-you-lose-yourself-inside-the-world-of-a-fictional-character/) [Terry Marselle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-marselle/) > [There are things you can say in the voice of a fictional character that you could not explore any other way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/contrapoints/there-are-things-you-can-say-in-the-voice-of-a-fictional-character/) ContraPoints ## More by Ed Helms > [First there was the New Hampshire primary, and we had nearly a year leading up to it. And now, look! Three primaries in one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/first-there-was-the-new-hampshire-primary-and-we-had-nearly-a-year/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [The biggest thing that comes out of improv that gets built on is just character traits. You know, for me the singing was born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/the-biggest-thing-that-comes-out-of-improv-that-gets-built-on-is-just/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [ It was never tough \[ being the new guy\]. It's just the warmest group of people \[The Office stuff\] you could ever hope to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/it-was-never-tough-being-the-new-guy-it-s-just-the-warmest-group-of/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [ What's cool is that in the story of the movie \[The Hangover\] our characters are also really kind of getting to know each other… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/what-s-cool-is-that-in-the-story-of-the-movie-the-hangover-our/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [Sometimes you just create a joke out of thin air in the editing room. I'm really glad I've had that experience. It gives me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/sometimes-you-just-create-a-joke-out-of-thin-air-in-the-editing-room/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [I love travel. I love to go spend time in new places. And even though I got horribly sick in Thailand, and it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/i-love-travel-i-love-to-go-spend-time-in-new-places-and-even-though-i/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [ One of the biggest breaks we had actually, one of the biggest, the hardest I laughed on the movie \[The Hangover\] was the baby… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/one-of-the-biggest-breaks-we-had-actually-one-of-the-biggest-the/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [ Todd \[Phillips\] doesn't care. That's part of his genius as a director, he will say anything to anybody. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/todd-phillips-doesn-t-care-that-s-part-of-his-genius-as-a-director-he/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [So long as your desire to explore is greater than your desire to not screw up, you're on the right track.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/so-long-as-your-desire-to-explore-is-greater-than-your-desire-to-not/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [People now genuinely respond to it and associate me with music. It's really fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/people-now-genuinely-respond-to-it-and-associate-me-with-music-it-s/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [I'm a very jaded and cynical person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/i-m-a-very-jaded-and-cynical-person/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [When you're in New York City or Los Angeles, even if you're not dealing with show business, there's still this sense that it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/when-you-re-in-new-york-city-or-los-angeles-even-if-you-re-not/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [That's actually a rare thing to be on a set full of people that you admire and make you laugh all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/that-s-actually-a-rare-thing-to-be-on-a-set-full-of-people-that-you/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [People who grew up in New York City or Los Angeles tend not to even understand what goes on in the rest of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/people-who-grew-up-in-new-york-city-or-los-angeles-tend-not-to-even/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [To be totally candid, it was really born out of a panic attack the summer between my sophomore and junior years, when I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/to-be-totally-candid-it-was-really-born-out-of-a-panic-attack-the/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) [Explore all 104 Ed Helms quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) David Hudgins > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [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/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [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/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and confusing and kind of messes with your values a bit.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ed Helms" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-character-reacting-to-the-real-world/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-character-reacting-to-the-real-world/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cc/ed-helms-4996_character_when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-characte_55963.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and…” — Ed Helms", "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": "Ed Helms", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When you're playing a fictional character...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-character-reacting-to-the-real-world/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/when-you-re-playing-a-fictional-character-reacting-to-the-real-world/#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 } } ] } ```