I don't think Hollywood knows what to do with me. I would imagine that when it comes to romantic comedies, my name would be pretty low down on the list.
We're given a code to live our lives by. We don't always follow it but it's still there.
[on portraying famous people]: It's a double-edged sword because, in one sense, you have a lot of material to work with, but in a strange kind of way, that puts up a framework that you have to keep within. You can't play Beethoven with pink hair but, to an extent, because no-one has ever met him, who's going to tell me that's not Beethoven?
With Beethoven [Immortal Beloved (1994)] I said I wanted a role where I didn't have to do anything stupid with my hair. My agent said "Read it again!".
[on making Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)]: I've done so much R-rated work, it's nice to have a job you can show your kids.
I had this idea of myself as a shy, kind, sweet chap. I was working with Winona Ryder and she turned to me and said, "Fuck, man, you're really intense!" I was so shocked, I went, "What do you mean? I'm not intense, I'm sweet!" My passion and energy get mistaken for anger.
[on Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)] I guess what I'm trying to say is, it's not Dracula crying, it's Gary Oldman, but using the technique of the character. The emotion is mine, because I don't know what it's like to be undead and live 300 years.
Any actor who tells you that they have become the people they play, unless they're clearly diagnosed as a schizophrenic, is bullshitting you.First known as a rapper who became one of the more prominent voices in hip-hop's new millennium renaissance, Common later transitioned into acting. He was born in Chicago, and is the son of educator Dr. Mahalia Ann Hines and Lonnie Lynn, an ABA basketball player turned youth counselor.

On October 6, 1992, Common released his first LP, "Can I Borrow A Dollar?" under the Common Sense moniker. Tracks like "Charm's Alarm" and "Breaker 1-9" established him as a lyricist with wit, street-smarts, and love for extended similes, while tracks like "Heidi Hoe" would touch on the misogyny that would surface sparingly on future work.

In 1994 he released "Resurrection", notable for the smooth 'Large Professor' produced title cut as well as "I Used To Love H.E.R.", an ode to hip-hop. This album further increased his underground reputation while giving the hip-hop nation a new solid conscientious voice in a year that was excellent for underground artists (Nas, Kendrick Davis, Digable Planet, et al.)

After a name change brought on by a lawsuit, Common reemerged in 1997 with "One Day It'll All Make Sense". With guests ranging from Erykah Badu to Canibus to De La Soul and production help from mainstays No I.D. and Dug Infinite, the album had a distinctly underground flair. His big mainstream breakthrough album was yet to come.

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Trivia

Had a public feud with Ice Cube in the late 90s, epitomized in the song "The Bitch In Yoo.".
Was known as Common Sense prior to 1995, when a ska band with that name sued him, forcing him to shorten his name.
He was engaged to singer Erykah Badu.
Is signed to Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label.
Filming American Gangster (2007) with co-stars Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington in New York City. [September 2006]
Working on 7th album 'Finding Forever' which is due for release in 2007. [March 2006]
Friends with Steve Harvey, and Taraji P. Henson.
In a relationship with Angela Rye.

[Talking about Britney Spears comeback concert performance]: I think it didn't seem like she wanted to be there. There wasn't any spark, it didn't feel like life was there.