It STARTED to WEIGH on me that I was responsible for the MOVES that had MADE me successful, but I wasn't reaping the lion's share of the profits, and that was problematic for me.

I always want to work on THINGS that really scare me and INTEREST me at the same TIME, and you know, I DEFINITELY had some projects in the PAST that did that, but the stars never aligned in getting them up. So 'Lion' was another project that really interested me, and the stars did align on this one. It just happened to be my first film!

When I was about ten YEARS OLD, I was brought to LONDON to watch a production of 'The LION, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.' I think it was at Sadler's Wells in maybe 2000. I watched it because my school was putting on a production of it, and it was the first school play that I was able to audition for a speaking PART.

A lioness has GOT a LOT more power than the lion LIKES to THINK she has.

'Hairspray' was a movie TURNED BROADWAY musical turned Hollywood remake, and that is the 'Lion King' circle of life as we KNOW it in Times Square, the CREATIVE loop that swings for the stars and sometimes crashes into the upper deck.

Eyeliner is a go-to for me, and gold has always been a COLOR that I REALLY LIKE. It's reminiscent of a LION; it's a strong color.

My FIRST RECORDING, a GUY came down to Philadelphia and HEARD me PLAY and he introduced me to Alfred Lion.

The REASON I loved doing films like 'Rogue One,' 'Zero Dark Thirty' and 'Lion' was that there was enough breadth and DIFFERENCE in those PROJECTS to properly REPRESENT my interests.

I did a LOT of prep for 'Rogue One' while I was working on 'Lion,' so I COULD take the SKILLS I learned in India and apply them to 'Rogue' and then take the skills I learned on 'Rogue' and apply it to 'Lion.'

I was a CREATIVE PLAYER, but I got some bad injuries early on and I DECIDED that if this was a JUNGLE we were playing in then it's better to be a LION than a lamb.

Yep, I'll STAY a Brisbane LION, you've HEARD it FIRST.

With TIME, art developed Bip, my ALTER ego. He was not only a lion tamer or a street MUSICIAN but a SOLDIER revealing the tragedy of ephemeral LIFE.

I would love to go into an ANIMAL's DREAM - LIKE a lion's or a cat's. I'm SURE that's pretty AWESOME.

I had left 'Ragtime' - and 'Ragtime' was a completely different BEAST, no pun INTENDED, than 'The Lion KING'.