--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A very odd thing happened to my career…" description: "\"A very odd thing happened to my career when I got The Wire. My career was pretty much a steady climb; I didn't really flatline much. When I did The Wir..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/lance-reddick-17333_film_a-very-odd-thing-happened-to-my-career-w_836626.jpg" --- # A very odd thing happened to my career when I got The… ![“A very odd thing happened to my career when I got The Wire. My career was pretty much a steady climb; I didn't really flatline much. When I did The Wire, that's when I thought all the doors would open, but that's when things flatlined. I had a really hard time just getting seen for film, which was…” quote by Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/lance-reddick-17333_film_a-very-odd-thing-happened-to-my-career-w_836626.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/lance-reddick-17333_film_a-very-odd-thing-happened-to-my-career-w_836626.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/lance-reddick-17333_film_a-very-odd-thing-happened-to-my-career-w_836626.jpg) > “A very odd thing happened to my career when I got The Wire. My career was pretty much a steady climb; I didn't really flatline much. When I did The Wire, that's when I thought all the doors would open, but that's when things flatlined. I had a really hard time just getting seen for film, which was the next step.” [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Expectations after a breakthrough can lead to disappointment when opportunities stall. **In simple terms:** Success may not follow fame. Key Takeaway Manage expectations and keep networking. Themes career expectations disappointment Mood reflective determined Type motivational career‑development When to use this quote - film auditions - career planning - skill development Key Concepts industry dynamics visibility networking Questions to Reflect On - How can you create a steady pipeline of opportunities? - What alternative paths can you pursue? A Different Perspective Fame does not guarantee sustained progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Hard time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-time/) [Hard times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-times/) [Next step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-step/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) ## Related quotes > [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. 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I have begun to doubt Tennyson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-manley-hopkins/do-you-know-a-horrible-thing-has-happened-to-me-i-have-begun-to-doubt/) [Gerard Manley Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-manley-hopkins/) > [“Until you two came along, she was the best thing that happened to me in my whole goddamned life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-ashley/until-you-two-came-along-she-was-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me/) [Kristen Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-ashley/) > [I love my disability. It is the best thing that ever happened to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-alcott/i-love-my-disability-it-is-the-best-thing-that-ever-happened-to-me/) [Dylan Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-alcott/) > [“When i said nothing, the best thing that happened to me in three years left. Damn, i was an idiot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-mcgarry/when-i-said-nothing-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-in-three-years/) [Katie McGarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-mcgarry/) > [“The most awesome thing happened to me today. My former high school English teacher has been editing my book for me. She told me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-thornton-k/the-most-awesome-thing-happened-to-me-today-my-former-high-school/) Katie Thornton-K > [“And then a strange thing happened. Out of the diseased and deteriorated pool os tired thoughts came life. A simple and poisoned life, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mckean/and-then-a-strange-thing-happened-out-of-the-diseased-and/) [Dave McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mckean/) > [“A strange thing happened to me in my dream. I was rapt into the Seventh Heaven. There sat all the gods assembled. As a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-strange-thing-happened-to-me-in-my-dream-i-was-rapt-into-the/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [You know Kim Jong Un, the evil dictator of North Korea? Apparently, a guy in his inner circle used his ashtray while smoking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/you-know-kim-jong-un-the-evil-dictator-of-north-korea-apparently-a/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [When the punk rock thing happened, I thought, 'Right, I have one chance here to be seen as part of some wider social phenomenon.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cooper-clarke/when-the-punk-rock-thing-happened-i-thought-right-i-have-one-chance/) [John Cooper Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cooper-clarke/) ## More by Lance Reddick > [I can only speak as an American, but most journalism here isn't doing its job any more. It's about selling stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/i-can-only-speak-as-an-american-but-most-journalism-here-isn-t-doing/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [I grew up studying music. I went to conservatory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/i-grew-up-studying-music-i-went-to-conservatory/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [That's what David Caruso said to me. We were talking about the whole Emmy thing, and he said that one of the things about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/that-s-what-david-caruso-said-to-me-we-were-talking-about-the-whole/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [I'm an artist at heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/i-m-an-artist-at-heart/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [Most of the characters I'd played were so different from me, so far from me that I had to transform.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/most-of-the-characters-i-d-played-were-so-different-from-me-so-far/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [The Wire' really drew on a lot of real-life situations and real-life organizations - it created fiction to make a social statement about reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/the-wire-really-drew-on-a-lot-of-real-life-situations-and-real-life/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [Notes are tricky in an audition, because I find, more often than not, my instinct is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/notes-are-tricky-in-an-audition-because-i-find-more-often-than-not-my/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [If you're going to come at me, come at me respectfully, and I will respond respectfully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/if-you-re-going-to-come-at-me-come-at-me-respectfully-and-i-will/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [I started to realize, a lot of times if you go into your memory, your sense memory, you know more than you think you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/i-started-to-realize-a-lot-of-times-if-you-go-into-your-memory-your/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [Notes are tricky in an audition, because I find, more often than not, my instinct is right. If they have a preconceived notion about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/notes-are-tricky-in-an-audition-because-i-find-more-often-than-not-my-2/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [The African American community is so under-served in the entertainment industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/the-african-american-community-is-so-under-served-in-the/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [I feel like my public life isn't necessarily my own. I'm starting to get used to how to maneuver and operate in New York…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/i-feel-like-my-public-life-isn-t-necessarily-my-own-i-m-starting-to/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [It's funny, 90 percent of what I've done has been television, and I never really wanted to do it that much. I was really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/it-s-funny-90-percent-of-what-i-ve-done-has-been-television-and-i/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [From the time I became an actor my whole approach was to try to do as many different things as possible. It never occurred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/from-the-time-i-became-an-actor-my-whole-approach-was-to-try-to-do-as/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) > [It's funny, because in drama school, my greatest strength was my range. So my early career was like that: I played all kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-reddick/it-s-funny-because-in-drama-school-my-greatest-strength-was-my-range/) [Lance Reddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) [Explore all 37 Lance Reddick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-reddick/) ## More Film quotes > [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/) [Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [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/) > [ Brad \[Dourif\] would tell himself that he was not intentionally trying to mimic Jack Nicholson in any way. I think that actually bothers him… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kirschner/brad-dourif-would-tell-himself-that-he-was-not-intentionally-trying/) [David Kirschner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kirschner/) > [My only close-to-game-plan is to follow good writing. If the writing is in TV or if it's in theater or in film, that's it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-driver/my-only-close-to-game-plan-is-to-follow-good-writing-if-the-writing/) [Adam Driver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-driver/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [Making movies seemed so impossible as far as getting my ideas funded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boots-riley/making-movies-seemed-so-impossible-as-far-as-getting-my-ideas-funded/) [Boots Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boots-riley/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? 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I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [Pakistan now is like a horror film franchise. You know, it's 'Friday the 13th, Episode 63: The Terrorist from Pakistan.' And each time we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/pakistan-now-is-like-a-horror-film-franchise-you-know-it-s-friday-the/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) [Browse all 32,254 Film quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A very odd thing happened to my career when I got The Wire. My career was pretty much a steady climb; I didn't really flatline much. When I did The Wire, that's when I thought all the doors would open, but that's when things flatlined. 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