--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you're acting, playing the bad guy…" description: "\"When you're acting, playing the bad guy, you get a chance to open up this box inside and look at all the bad things that you've got in there.\" — Martin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e54/martin-kemp-6448_acting_when-you-re-acting-playing-the-bad-guy-y_357598.jpg" --- # When you're acting, playing the bad guy, you get a chance… ![“When you're acting, playing the bad guy, you get a chance to open up this box inside and look at all the bad things that you've got in there.” quote by Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e54/martin-kemp-6448_acting_when-you-re-acting-playing-the-bad-guy-y_357598.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e54/martin-kemp-6448_acting_when-you-re-acting-playing-the-bad-guy-y_357598.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e54/martin-kemp-6448_acting_when-you-re-acting-playing-the-bad-guy-y_357598.jpg) > “When you're acting, playing the bad guy, you get a chance to open up this box inside and look at all the bad things that you've got in there.” [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Playing a villain allows an actor to explore inner darkness, revealing personal flaws and hidden emotions through the role. **In simple terms:** Acting as a villain reveals personal inner darkness. Key Takeaway Use roles to uncover hidden aspects of self. Themes acting self-exploration villainy psychology creativity Mood introspective therapeutic Type artistic psychological When to use this quote - theater rehearsals - film sets - acting workshops - personal growth sessions Key Concepts shadow work character study emotional honesty Questions to Reflect On - What personal insights have you gained from such roles? - How do you separate character darkness from self? A Different Perspective Focusing on negative traits can be psychologically taxing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) [Bad guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-guy/) [Bad things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-things/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ## Related quotes > [Playing a bad guy is always more fun than playing the good guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-robbie/playing-a-bad-guy-is-always-more-fun-than-playing-the-good-guy/) [Margot Robbie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-robbie/) > [Let's say you would see me in a lot more big movies had I done movies that I'd been asked to do playing bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-busey/let-s-say-you-would-see-me-in-a-lot-more-big-movies-had-i-done-movies/) [Jake Busey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-busey/) > [When you're playing the good guy, you want to find the dirty parts - and when you're playing the bad guy, you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-wilson/when-you-re-playing-the-good-guy-you-want-to-find-the-dirty-parts-and/) [Patrick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-wilson/) > [I'm a good guy. 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Which is a lot of fun.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-robinson/you-know-the-blond-guy-plays-the-good-guy-and-i-play-the-bad-part-the/) Matt Robinson > [To be honest, Im a little tired of playing bad guys. I long to do a comedy. But it was fun knocking Indiana Jones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-oldman/to-be-honest-im-a-little-tired-of-playing-bad-guys-i-long-to-do-a/) [Gary Oldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-oldman/) > [I love playing bad guys; they're always much more fun than the good guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-bowler/i-love-playing-bad-guys-they-re-always-much-more-fun-than-the-good-guy/) [Grant Bowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-bowler/) > [Virtue is not photogenic, so I liked playing bad guys. 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It becomes dangerous when it is softened, like in 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/the-violence-in-eastenders-is-a-lot-more-dangerous-than-the-violence/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [Charisma always was the important thing to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/charisma-always-was-the-important-thing-to-me/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [There was a moment when Thierry Henry returned to Arsenal for a game against Leeds, and the whole of the ground was waiting for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/there-was-a-moment-when-thierry-henry-returned-to-arsenal-for-a-game/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [My favourite genre is probably Seventies rock: Deep Purple, Black Sabbath. 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My mum and dad put me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/when-i-was-young-i-first-went-into-the-theatre-which-opened-up-across/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [My wife Shirlie was in Wham! when we met, so we were moving in the same circles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/my-wife-shirlie-was-in-wham-when-we-met-so-we-were-moving-in-the-same/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [There's not many jobs where you go home and are still smiling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/there-s-not-many-jobs-where-you-go-home-and-are-still-smiling/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [I've worked with lots of actors who sit at home for years waiting to get a job, then as soon as they do, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/i-ve-worked-with-lots-of-actors-who-sit-at-home-for-years-waiting-to/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [I joined Spandau Ballet not because I wanted to be the best musician in the world, but because I wanted to be Elvis Presley,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/i-joined-spandau-ballet-not-because-i-wanted-to-be-the-best-musician/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [Sometimes when somebody wants to take the lead it's nice to take a back seat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/sometimes-when-somebody-wants-to-take-the-lead-it-s-nice-to-take-a/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [Gary and I have been working together all our adult lives and there aren't many brothers who have that opportunity, or they have that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/gary-and-i-have-been-working-together-all-our-adult-lives-and-there/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [If you're lucky enough to come from, I was very lucky when I grew up, I grew up in a house fill of love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/if-you-re-lucky-enough-to-come-from-i-was-very-lucky-when-i-grew-up-i/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) > [I'd grown up with no money and, when money had come into my life, I hadn't cared about chasing it. Earning it was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kemp/i-d-grown-up-with-no-money-and-when-money-had-come-into-my-life-i/) [Martin Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) [Explore all 99 Martin Kemp quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kemp/) ## More Acting 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/) > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. 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Sometimes it takes longer than what you can give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/acting-is-a-grind-just-like-music-is-a-grind-sometimes-it-takes/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Writing is something I took up rather than anything I had an inclination toward. I like acting -delivering someone else's message - but writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/writing-is-something-i-took-up-rather-than-anything-i-had-an/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. 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