--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't think I've ever done a character…" description: "\"I don't think I've ever done a character like this before, so I couldn't really draw from previous roles. I've been known for doing a lot of comedies i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/tamsin-egerton-12489_character_i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-done-a-character_23486.png" --- # I don't think I've ever done a character like this before… ![“I don't think I've ever done a character like this before, so I couldn't really draw from previous roles. I've been known for doing a lot of comedies in England, so I don't think that would have worked. I completely went from scratch, with this one, and used the research and what was in the…” quote by Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/tamsin-egerton-12489_character_i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-done-a-character_23486.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/tamsin-egerton-12489_character_i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-done-a-character_23486.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/tamsin-egerton-12489_character_i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-done-a-character_23486.png) > “I don't think I've ever done a character like this before, so I couldn't really draw from previous roles. I've been known for doing a lot of comedies in England, so I don't think that would have worked. I completely went from scratch, with this one, and used the research and what was in the script, and spoke to Chris. It's all from in my mind ,rather than drawing from previous experiences or roles.” [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes the challenge of portraying a completely new character without relying on past roles, emphasizing research and script analysis over personal experience. **In simple terms:** New role required fresh approach. Key Takeaway Research and script guide performance. Themes creative process acting technique character development research adaptation originality Mood curious determined Type personal anecdote professional insight When to use this quote - preparing for an unfamiliar role - transitioning between genres - working with a director Key Concepts character immersion script analysis collaboration Practical Applications - acting workshops - character study guides Questions to Reflect On - How does research shape an actor's interpretation? - What risks arise when abandoning familiar methods? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/england/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I try to choose characters that don't remind the audience of my previous roles. I make a conscious effort for that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fahadh-faasil/i-try-to-choose-characters-that-don-t-remind-the-audience-of-my/) [Fahadh Faasil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fahadh-faasil/) > [Some actors come to casting and ask me, "Didn't you see my previous roles?" We do not work with actors like this. Their previous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrey-zvyagintsev/some-actors-come-to-casting-and-ask-me-didn-t-you-see-my-previous/) [Andrey Zvyagintsev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrey-zvyagintsev/) > [One of my favorite actors is Javier Bardem, he always challenges his previous roles, and basically does the unexpected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freida-pinto/one-of-my-favorite-actors-is-javier-bardem-he-always-challenges-his/) [Freida Pinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freida-pinto/) > [“And the scratches you left on my back remind me just what it felt like to be deep inside you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriane-leigh/and-the-scratches-you-left-on-my-back-remind-me-just-what-it-felt/) [Adriane Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriane-leigh/) > [I know now that everybody in the arts is forever a beginner. Experience counts for a great deal and very little. Every night onstage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-know-now-that-everybody-in-the-arts-is-forever-a-beginner/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [I am burdened with what the Buddhists call the monkey mind. The thoughts that swing from limb to limb, stopping only to scratch themselves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-am-burdened-with-what-the-buddhists-call-the-monkey-mind-the/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [The state of New Jersey is really two places - terrible cities and wonderful suburbs. I live in the suburbs, the final battleground of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/the-state-of-new-jersey-is-really-two-places-terrible-cities-and/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [I mean, as you start to scratch the surface - and that's what I think the intent of these films are. Here's a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-henchy/i-mean-as-you-start-to-scratch-the-surface-and-that-s-what-i-think/) Chris Henchy > [So someday in the near future hopefully rather than having a foot or a leg amputated we'll just give you an injection of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lanza/so-someday-in-the-near-future-hopefully-rather-than-having-a-foot-or/) [Robert Lanza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lanza/) > [A fiddler on the roof. Sounds crazy, no? But here, in our little village of Anatevka, you might say every one of us is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-harnick/a-fiddler-on-the-roof-sounds-crazy-no-but-here-in-our-little-village/) [Sheldon Harnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-harnick/) > [“And while we're on the subject, I know you were wondering, and yes, I was checking you out. It had nothing to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-hildenbrand/and-while-we-re-on-the-subject-i-know-you-were-wondering-and-yes-i/) [Heather Hildenbrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-hildenbrand/) > [To this day I over prepare. I draw storyboards for every scene - chicken scratches so crude that they amuse and horrify the crew.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-stoltz/to-this-day-i-over-prepare-i-draw-storyboards-for-every-scene-chicken/) [Eric Stoltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-stoltz/) > [I am actually working on The Neighbors sitcom. We are starting from scratch. I am also working on a comedy movie and a vampire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-wiseau/i-am-actually-working-on-the-neighbors-sitcom-we-are-starting-from/) [Tommy Wiseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-wiseau/) > [And then another letter had come from Christopher, so devastating that Amelia wondered how mere scratches of ink on paper could rip someone's soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/and-then-another-letter-had-come-from-christopher-so-devastating-that/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [It is very pleasant to scratch an itching ring-worm, but the sensation one gets afterwards is very painful and intolerable. In the same way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramakrishna/it-is-very-pleasant-to-scratch-an-itching-ring-worm-but-the-sensation/) [Ramakrishna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramakrishna/) ## More by Tamsin Egerton > [I hate watching myself on film because I am so judgmental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-hate-watching-myself-on-film-because-i-am-so-judgmental/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I've always wanted to play Guinevere. I just asked Chris what he thought, and he steered me in the right directions. We just wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-ve-always-wanted-to-play-guinevere-i-just-asked-chris-what-he/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I did model for a little while part-time, but I wasn't a bloody model, and I am definitely not that horrible thing 'model-turned-actress.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-did-model-for-a-little-while-part-time-but-i-wasn-t-a-bloody-model/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I actually love doing period pieces, purely because it takes you into a different world, mentally. The clothes you have to wear are so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-actually-love-doing-period-pieces-purely-because-it-takes-you-into/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I am my own worst enemy. My friends and family will say, 'You've got everything going for you right now', and I say, 'Oh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-am-my-own-worst-enemy-my-friends-and-family-will-say-you-ve-got/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I'm not interested in serial dating; I'd honestly rather be single.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-m-not-interested-in-serial-dating-i-d-honestly-rather-be-single/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [Some people who meet me might think I starve myself, because there's such an assumption that being thin involves putting yourself through torture and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/some-people-who-meet-me-might-think-i-starve-myself-because-there-s/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [That's really why I wanted to do it. I wanted to be a part of this generation's telling of Camelot, and also get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/that-s-really-why-i-wanted-to-do-it-i-wanted-to-be-a-part-of-this/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [And, the sets that they built are just so beautiful. It's like going to a completely foreign country and experiencing a new culture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/and-the-sets-that-they-built-are-just-so-beautiful-it-s-like-going-to/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [My style is schizophrenic! One minute I'll be wearing bright girly dresses, and the next I'll be swinging towards more structured masculine things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/my-style-is-schizophrenic-one-minute-i-ll-be-wearing-bright-girly/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I don't think any actors love taking their clothes off on film, unless you're an exhibitionist, which I'm certainly not. Those are the scenes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-don-t-think-any-actors-love-taking-their-clothes-off-on-film-unless/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [I will normally eat about seven or eight mince pies in one sitting. Sometimes, I can get to double figures. My friends, and probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/i-will-normally-eat-about-seven-or-eight-mince-pies-in-one-sitting/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [At 11, I got my first job in a mini-series for America, and it was very exciting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/at-11-i-got-my-first-job-in-a-mini-series-for-america-and-it-was-very/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [Kicks are my forte. I've got strong legs and high kicks. And I've got very good reach, obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/kicks-are-my-forte-i-ve-got-strong-legs-and-high-kicks-and-i-ve-got/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [Guinevere is just head over heels and doesn't know how to handle these new emotions that she's feeling, as a young woman. Unfortunately, she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/guinevere-is-just-head-over-heels-and-doesn-t-know-how-to-handle/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) [Explore all 54 Tamsin Egerton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) ## 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": "I don't think I've ever done a character like this before, so I couldn't really draw from previous roles. I've been known for doing a lot of comedies in England, so I don't think that would have worked. I completely went from scratch, with this one, and used the research and what was in the script, and spoke to Chris. 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