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" I want to continue to do some great work. I'm nowhere close to where I want to be. I'm a diverse person who's trying to use his art to make the world better. "

Michael Jai White

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" Directing was a natural thing for me. Actually, it was far less stressful directing than being the lead actor. I was able to have my input in all aspects of it. "

Michael Jai White

" That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny. "

Michael Jai White

" In reality, there are very few villains who view themselves as villains. They just have a certain agenda at a certain time. "

Michael Jai White

" I've sold scripts in the past, and also a TV pilot that didn't get made, to Fox. But yeah, I've been writing for a while. "

Michael Jai White

" Just by nature, I think in comedy. I think in sketches and what have you. In every drama or action movie I've been in, I have to make a concerted effort not to turn it into a comedy. Every shot, before action is called and after cut is called, I'm usually in some goofy head space. It feels natural to me. "

Michael Jai White

" I feel like I missed my era, because I remember the time when black people uplifted each other and looked for the positives. I feel sorry for the people who live their lives in the negative default setting because they filter out what's good, and that's no way to live. "

Michael Jai White

" People know Tyler Perry, and there are standards they've come to expect from him. His brand is uplifting, and it's something a lot of inner-city African-Americans can relate to. "

Michael Jai White

" The first movie I ever saw was a blaxploitation movie. It was called 'Monkey Hustle.' Like I said, just listen to the name. That's a blaxploitation movie. It had these incredible, bigger-than-life images of people who looked like I did. Or who looked like I wanted to look like. "

Michael Jai White

" My favorite TV couple is Edith and Archie Bunker. Because they were such individuals that I can't imagine anyone else playing them. And I think that Archie was one of the greatest characters ever on television. Even with his flaws, you loved him. "

Michael Jai White

" There's all kinds of depictions of black men. You have the Denzel Washingtons and the Will Smiths; that's wonderful, but that doesn't represent everyone. There's a Russell Crowe... well, you know, there's a black Russell Crowe. "

Michael Jai White

" I've never excluded myself because of color. It's never been part of the radar, when I look at anything I do. The majority of the roles that I've played have had very little to do with being black. It doesn't matter what color you are. "

Michael Jai White

" I remember as a young man seeing these bigger-than-life, strong images of black manhood in the form of Jim Brown and Fred Williamson, Jim Kelly, Billy Dee Williams. All these guys were these alpha males who were smart, attractive. I said, 'Wow, I want to be like that.' "

Michael Jai White

" I take every role seriously. Personally, I never look at any role as Michael White. I've done that my entire life. "

Michael Jai White

" There's people saying that 'Jackie Brown' was a blaxploitation movie, when there's nothing at all blaxploitation about it other than Pam Grier being in it. "

Michael Jai White

" I don't know when the last time I had fried chicken was. Must've been years. As soon as I think about eating it, I think about the stomach ache I'd get. "

Michael Jai White

" I don't cook. I think they named the 'Mike'-rowave after me. "

Michael Jai White

" I was pretty much a child of 'Monty Python.' I grew up loving that type of humor and even structured a lot of humor in the same fashion. "

Michael Jai White

" I love the '70s. I think the '70s had the best music and the best movies. "

Michael Jai White

" I love the movie 'Taken,' but the dialogue in the beginning of that movie is hilarious. They're talking, these commando types, and there's dialogue like, 'Hopefully your daughter appreciates what you're doing for her. Does she know that you're doing it?' What guys talk like this? "

Michael Jai White

" When I was young, I had a favorite movie star. One day, I saw one of his movies, and it was bad, and he was bad in it. I could tell he didn't care and only did it for the money. I felt betrayed. I never watched another one of his movies again. "

Michael Jai White

" I go to gyms quite a bit, martial arts gyms, MMA gyms. I try to train with the best people, with who's who in the martial arts, just to keep myself sharp. "

Michael Jai White

" Most people say I look mean, and because I play so many tough roles and because of my size and my martial arts background, they think I am, but I'm really not. "

Michael Jai White

" Since I do seven different styles of martial arts, I don't foresee myself fighting the same in any two movies. I think every fighting style should fit the character that's doing the fighting. "

Michael Jai White

" There's a way that white people and black people spoke in the '70s that is nothing like how they speak now. They spoke from a soul, actually. There's a singsongy way of walking and talking that's just different now. "

Michael Jai White