Quotes by Rosie Perez

As an actor, you may do things that aren't politically correct. Unless you're an actor who only does things for political reasons. I believe if we don't do the good, bad, and the ugly, we're not going to progress.

As far as a Latin explosion, I'm sorry, I'm the only Latino who's going to say it, but there is no Latin explosion. I'm sorry. Four or five top box office people do not make it an explosion, and it's disgusting to me that people will perceive it that way.

Certain people who care about me a lot have said 'You don't play the game, and if you don't play the game, you don't get picked for the team all the time.

Everyone was like 'Oh, you'd be a perfect Frankie, she's a working-class girl, ta da da da da,' and I was like 'I don't get her. She gave up. That's not me. That has never been me.' It took me a minute to figure out who she was. I was like 'Well, how come she doesn't have any joy in her life? How come she gave up?' I had a rough life too, and I didn't give up, and I have joy.

I can promote a cause, such as AIDS. I can promote a movie. But to promote myself just doesn't feel right. That's why you're not going to see me at awards shows, you're not going to see me at MTV functions, because I don't want to go.

I'm not satisfied. I'm happy with the opportunities that have been presented to me, but it's a shame that a lot of Latin actors out there are not being recognized for the work that they do. If Selma wasn't making WILD WILD WEST, if Jennifer wasn't making OUT OF SIGHT, if I wasn't making THE ROAD TO EL DORADO, they wouldn't really call it an explosion. Aside from us, who else can you name?

In movies, you have a production assistant carrying your chair around and getting you coffee. In theater, no one carries your chair, no one gets you your coffee, there's no craft service, there's no per diem. The only thing that is provided for you is coffee, tea, sugar and milk. It doesn't matter how big a star you are or whatever.

In movies, you shoot out of sequence, so the issue of reality is really taken out of it.

In my circle of friends, I've always been loud and funny and talkative. But as soon as I step out of that circle, I get very quiet and introspective. I don't want the spotlight on me.

The majority of Latin actresses in Hollywood were always playing either spitfires or maids. Now here is a woman who comes in and does leads opposite white people and black people and other Spanish people, and she's comfortable in her skin? Gasp! How dare she?

They asked me to come in and read for them. My reading was horrible. I laughed through the whole thing. I couldn't get through one scene because the actor they had there was so bad. But then they called and said I got the part. I don't know. It's very strange.

When I first saw the character Chel, I was really bothered because she used to have these really thick tree trunk ankles and I was like, Come on, you gave her everything else and you gotta ruin it with tree trunks. Just slim down the ankles some. That was my only request. And Jeffrey Katzenberg was like, GGGOOOOOODDDD, under his breath.

I am a positive person. I never think of the glass as half empty. I just keep pushing forward.