Sometimes perfecting the one thing can be the enemy of getting any traction on anything else. Jay Roach More Quotes by Jay Roach More Quotes From Jay Roach [Lyndon Baines ] Johnson is a big and larger-than-life guy, we just tried to give him the dynamic range that he actually had. Jay Roach larger-than-life guy giving Mini-Me was the pint sized clone that was the perpetuation of Dr. Evil's own legacy [in Austin Powers]. That concept earned the sequel. Jay Roach austin legacy evil When we had ideas that earned there way in [Austin Powers], it began to get okay. The hook for me was 'Mini-Me.' We only auditioned one guy - Verne Troyer - and at the time I said, 'we have to get this guy, get him life insurance, whatever he needs' because there was no other way or actor to do it. It was amazing to me just to talk to him...he was Mini-Me. Jay Roach austin guy ideas I love Dr. Evil [from Austin Powers] as a walking, talking, narcissistic manifestation of everything screwed up about human existence - his desire to take over the world, and have the world reflect his own power lust. Jay Roach lust evil talking When we did the first sequel [of the Austin Powers] , it was on coattails of the first one doing so well when it was released on video, so we really didn't know what to do with the second plot. Jay Roach austin video plot To this day, people ask me where is Austin Powers 4? I don't have that answer, it so hard to come up with a story that deserves an encore like that. Jay Roach austin stories people It's hard to believe that these self-centered people have nuclear weapons that they can fire at any moment. Even modern wars are fought like revenge tales from some petty grievance. It was definitely tapping into the Dr. Strangelove vibe, which is one of my three top favorite films or all time. Jay Roach revenge war believe Even modern wars are fought like revenge tales from some petty grievance. Jay Roach modern revenge war Dalton Trumbo actually was [ a hypocrite], because he liked his wealth, which was against the grain of being a Communist. I put title cards at the head of the film that explains the context. Jay Roach titles hypocrite cards That's why we had Louis C.K. portray the harder line Communist, to accuse [Dalton] Trumbo of being a hypocrite. Jay Roach communist lines hypocrite Once you're a public figure, there's a certain amount of privacy you do give up. Jay Roach privacy giving-up figures I don't stay in the genre because I just like all stories that have a smart hook in them and I can find a comic way through if it's a comedy or a suspenseful way through it if it's a drama. Jay Roach hook smart drama I just always look for stuff that has a character-driven thing. Jay Roach stuff character looks I wish I was sort of someone like Woody Allen who can stage everything in one long master shot, no coverage; just, you know, that's it. Jay Roach woody wish long I like to shoot a lot of choices. I like a lot of stuff - and so I push to go faster, to shrink the time between the takes so that the takes are what you're spending all your time on. Jay Roach spending choices stuff There's people who actually have a whole science devoted to what makes a sticky meme and that idea of that question of why some ideas about how civilizations work catch on and others don't. Jay Roach civilization people ideas You can make an idea spread for good but you can also make an idea spread for bad and the power to make an idea spread, memetics, you know which now people talk about memes. Jay Roach memes people ideas I'm pretty opinionated sometimes although my political views change all the time, too. So I'm not very zealous. Jay Roach zealous political views I always had a respect and an admiration for people who got into politics. I certainly have always been interested in law and political science. Jay Roach political law people I was very interested in politics in college and was heading to be a lawyer. I have a degree in economics and I was interested in it. I hadn't really gotten super serious about it and I'd done a lot of student politics in high school. I really think it would be interesting and fun and challenging to go into politics. Jay Roach college fun school