I was 40 when I did my first movie. I didn't know what the hell I was doing. My interpretation of acting at the time, because I didn't know how to build a character, was pure energy. People call me an instinctive actor. I used to consider that an insult early on, only because I had never studied. Now... I love it.

Look, people have an image of Italians. When I go somewhere in the world, I don't care where it is, when they look at me it's not about my intelligence. It's who can I beat up.

[comparing The Godfather: Part II (1974) with The Sopranos (1999)] I don't know anyone who curses the way they do in an Italian household. I never said the word "hell" in front of my mother. That was a different time, but I have sons and they have never said the word "hell" in front of me or my wife. That's the truth, that's the truth. There was certainly less profanity, and there was a kind of respect. It's not that I totally agreed with it, but it was a great piece of art.

My entire family were Democrats all our lives. But because how furious I was about the previous administration and the particular person running that administration, I turned in my card to become a Republican because I did not want to be known as a Democrat under that person's regime. I'm a traditionalist. I have certain values that I live by, and he practices none of those things, so he can never be what I consider to be a great man. But I don't go around saying he's not my president. He's out of office now, so I can say that I never truly accepted him in my heart. And I'll never say anywhere down the line, I'll never reflect back on this moment in time and say it was a good period for the American people. Because the economy was good, anything goes, and that troubles me. I think many of them are very comfortable with money and don't have to subject themselves to anything other than say, hey - maybe I'm guilty for having all this, and I want to make believe I'm splitting it with the less fortunate. We talk about Hollywood being pro-labor, yet about 70% of our industry has been farmed out to Canada, meaning we are losing jobs like crazy. Where's organized labor asking how we can allow such a thing to happen? The producers know that if they go to Canada, they can make a picture for one-third the price they can in the U.S.

The first time I put on a dress and a wig and they took a Polaroid of me, I wanted to throw up. Except I saw a little bit of beauty in that I looked like my mother.