--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I became an actor by accident, not by…" description: "\"I became an actor by accident, not by design.\" — James Lipton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg" --- # I became an actor by accident, not by design. ![“I became an actor by accident, not by design.” quote by James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg) > “I became an actor by accident, not by design.” [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Acting often happens by chance, not by meticulous planning, highlighting the role of serendipity in creative careers. **In simple terms:** Acting can be accidental. Key Takeaway Embrace unexpected opportunities. Themes career creativity serendipity chance Mood optimistic reflective Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - auditions - networking events - life transitions Key Concepts career paths creative discovery life planning Questions to Reflect On - How can you stay open to accidental chances? - What role does luck play in your field? A Different Perspective Planning alone may miss spontaneous breakthroughs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident/) [Accident Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident-design-4293011/) [Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Actor Accident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor-accident-1095172/) [Actors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) ## Related quotes > [Me being an actor was an accident, and not something I wanted to do, because I knew what happened eventually. Yeah, maybe you'd get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/me-being-an-actor-was-an-accident-and-not-something-i-wanted-to-do/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [Accident is design / And design is accident / In a cloud of unknowing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/accident-is-design-and-design-is-accident-in-a-cloud-of-unknowing/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Success isn't something you achieve by accident, but rather by design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-murdock/success-isn-t-something-you-achieve-by-accident-but-rather-by-design/) [David H. Murdock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-murdock/) > [I became an actor by accident. I suppose I figured since I was in musical comedy from the time I was a teenager, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/i-became-an-actor-by-accident-i-suppose-i-figured-since-i-was-in/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) > [At heart, I'm not an actor, I'm an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sterling-hayden/at-heart-i-m-not-an-actor-i-m-an-accident/) [Sterling Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sterling-hayden/) > [I became an actor by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/i-became-an-actor-by-accident/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) > [Nuclear weapons need large facilities, but genetic engineering can be done in a small lab. You can't regulate every lab in the world. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/nuclear-weapons-need-large-facilities-but-genetic-engineering-can-be/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [An unexamined faith is not worth having, for it can be true only by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-luther-adams/an-unexamined-faith-is-not-worth-having-for-it-can-be-true-only-by/) [James Luther Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-luther-adams/) > [Man was an accident on this world or it would have been made better for him!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-aldiss/man-was-an-accident-on-this-world-or-it-would-have-been-made-better/) [Brian Aldiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-aldiss/) > [High birth is an accident, not a virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/high-birth-is-an-accident-not-a-virtue/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [There is a French expression that says: to be exposed to an accident, to cross a street without looking at the cars means exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-is-a-french-expression-that-says-to-be-exposed-to-an-accident/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [accident ruled every corner of the universe except the chambers of the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guterson/accident-ruled-every-corner-of-the-universe-except-the-chambers-of/) [David Guterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guterson/) > [The spirit in the body is like wine in a glass; when it spills, it seeps into air and earth and light….It’s a mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-michaels/the-spirit-in-the-body-is-like-wine-in-a-glass-when-it-spills-it/) [Anne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-michaels/) > [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) ## More by James Lipton > [What I didn't know that by sticking to craft we would blow open some doors that I never saw opened before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/what-i-didn-t-know-that-by-sticking-to-craft-we-would-blow-open-some/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [The studio is meant to be always a place where, first of all, they can be out of spotlight, and second, where they could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/the-studio-is-meant-to-be-always-a-place-where-first-of-all-they-can/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I may be writing well, I may be writing poorly, but I enjoy the act of writing and sometimes when it turns out okay,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-may-be-writing-well-i-may-be-writing-poorly-but-i-enjoy-the-act-of/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [And I thought if I don't pre-interview - first of all, we couldn't afford it - but the second thing was it would force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/and-i-thought-if-i-don-t-pre-interview-first-of-all-we-couldn-t/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I'll miss it until the day I die, and I'm convinced to this day that I can get on a horse and jump a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-ll-miss-it-until-the-day-i-die-and-i-m-convinced-to-this-day-that-i/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [The definition of genius, really, should be that that person can do what the rest of us have to learn how to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/the-definition-of-genius-really-should-be-that-that-person-can-do/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [They will take a role that scares them over a role that doesn't. That's another thing I like about actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/they-will-take-a-role-that-scares-them-over-a-role-that-doesn-t-that/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I thought we would have at most an audience of 5,000 devotees because I made the decision to stick to craft, not to gossip,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-thought-we-would-have-at-most-an-audience-of-5-000-devotees-because/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [Our language, one of our most precious natural resources, deserves at least as much protection as our woodlands, streams and whooping cranes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/our-language-one-of-our-most-precious-natural-resources-deserves-at/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [We are the only school in America, drama school in America that trains actors, writers and directors side by side for three years in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/we-are-the-only-school-in-america-drama-school-in-america-that-trains/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [When you're talking about the thing that is most important to someone, they're liable to feel something strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/when-you-re-talking-about-the-thing-that-is-most-important-to-someone/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I stopped writing at the age of 18. I had written incessantly before that. I read, of course, because I was in university, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-stopped-writing-at-the-age-of-18-i-had-written-incessantly-before/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I was originally going to be a lawyer, and the only thing I remember from the art of cross-examination is - you can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-was-originally-going-to-be-a-lawyer-and-the-only-thing-i-remember/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [Olivier was another case of a genius, who couldn't understand why anybody would have any trouble doing this, because for him it came so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/olivier-was-another-case-of-a-genius-who-couldn-t-understand-why/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) > [I was dealing with craft, and that's the surprising thing, the number of people who have literally broken down on our stage, because when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-was-dealing-with-craft-and-that-s-the-surprising-thing-the-number/) [James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) [Explore all 50 James Lipton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/) ## More Accident quotes > [Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such: it is an accident, not a property, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/fame-we-may-understand-is-no-sure-test-of-merit-but-only-a/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [I went to school at night in L.A. to brush up on my engineering while I applied to the astronaut program. I really did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/i-went-to-school-at-night-in-l-a-to-brush-up-on-my-engineering-while/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [“The accident in your rearview mirror already happened. The one in front of you is still preventable. Pay attention.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nakia-r-laushaul/the-accident-in-your-rearview-mirror-already-happened-the-one-in/) [Nakia R. Laushaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nakia-r-laushaul/) > [People dont get married by accident and they dont get divorced by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-hayes/people-dont-get-married-by-accident-and-they-dont-get-divorced-by/) [Darren Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-hayes/) > [My father had Parkinson's, though he actually died following a bicycle accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/my-father-had-parkinson-s-though-he-actually-died-following-a-bicycle/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [A tragic car accident put me in a wheelchair and dashed my hopes and dreams for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-cawthorn/a-tragic-car-accident-put-me-in-a-wheelchair-and-dashed-my-hopes-and/) [Madison Cawthorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-cawthorn/) > [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) > [The spirit in the body is like wine in a glass; when it spills, it seeps into air and earth and light….It’s a mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-michaels/the-spirit-in-the-body-is-like-wine-in-a-glass-when-it-spills-it/) [Anne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-michaels/) > [accident ruled every corner of the universe except the chambers of the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guterson/accident-ruled-every-corner-of-the-universe-except-the-chambers-of/) [David Guterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guterson/) > [There is a French expression that says: to be exposed to an accident, to cross a street without looking at the cars means exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-is-a-french-expression-that-says-to-be-exposed-to-an-accident/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [High birth is an accident, not a virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/high-birth-is-an-accident-not-a-virtue/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [“I just got out of the hospital. I was in a speed reading accident. I hit a book mark and flew across the room.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/i-just-got-out-of-the-hospital-i-was-in-a-speed-reading-accident-i/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [However, I met with a horrible accident while riding my bike in Sangla Valley. The accident was a wakeup call for me stop getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhinav-shukla/however-i-met-with-a-horrible-accident-while-riding-my-bike-in-sangla/) [Abhinav Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhinav-shukla/) > [“Because the core of my personal philosophy is that everything that happens to us benefits us, I was also spared the futility of cursing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-the-core-of-my-personal-philosophy-is-that-everything-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 922 Accident quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I became an actor by accident, not by design.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Lipton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-design/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accident" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-design/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/james-lipton-13418_accidents_i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-des_1426356.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I became an actor by accident, not by design.” — James Lipton", "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": "James Lipton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I became an actor by accident,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-design/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/i-became-an-actor-by-accident-not-by-design/#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 } } ] } ```