- You know, all that really matters is that the people you love are happy and healthy. Everything else is just sprinkles on the sundae. - in Flaunt Magazine, July 2001.
- Some people say that you should go to all the parties, to the nightclubs, the Viper Room, and make contacts, and I look at them and say, 'You don't want to have contacts with those people.' Look at what happened to River Phoenix (who died in 1993 of a drug overdose outside the Viper Room). If you get caught up in that, it ruins you. Hollywood is garbage.
- Surfing soothes me, it's always been a kind of zen experience for me. The ocean is so magnificent, peaceful, and awesome. The rest of the world disappears for me when I'm on a wave.
- I'm into being a dad, that's where my focus is most of the time. I'm an actor that's my job, but it's not my life. I have a lot of other interests too.
- I'm a dreamer. I've got this whole thing where I think I'm supposed to be a musician. I live by the seat of my pants, but I'd like to think that I'm also pretty sensible.
- I want to get married. I think about it a lot. But I also think about my cars, so maybe my priorities aren't exactly in line just yet.
- Life's too short. And the biggest curse is falling in love with somebody.
- I'm much more likely to give myself a kick in the butt than a pat on the back.
- I like low maintenance, natural, outdoor, shy girls.
- I'm a Christian now. The things that drove me crazy growing up was how everyone works at fault-finding with different religions. The people I don't understand are atheists. I go surfing and snow boarding and I'm always around nature. I look at everything and think, 'Who couldn't believe there's a God? Is all this a mistake?' It just blows me away.
- (2010) I'm passionate about animals and I hunt too. It's like I save and I kill. I'm a walking, talking contradiction. I'm all about preserving the environment but I'm racing cars on the weekend. I tell everyone I'm a gun-loving hippy.
- [on often being asked how "Dom" - not Vin [Diesel] - is doing]: I get that a lot. I'm Brian a lot more than I'm Paul Walker, which is awesome. When I hear, "Hey, Paul Walker!" my hair stands up on the back of my neck. It's uncomfortable. But when I hear "It's Brian!" it's cool. I like Brian.
- [on "The Fast & the Furious" series]: When I did the first one, it was a cool movie where I got to run around in race cars, shoot a gun and kiss a hot chick. That's where I was at in my life then. Now that I'm older, there's a reason we're still here. The themes we hit on early on, whether the audience even realized what it was that was drawing them in, is irrelevant. The second you lose the family, how significant are we? It's funny to see the people connect with it the way they do. I had no clue, I didn't get it. And now, more I get it and I see it.
- [on Brian O'Conner, his character in "The Fast & the Furious" films]: The guy's a sucker for family. Brian's a heart guy, he just is. He's dealing with daddy issues and the things that most of us are that are unresolved. What he's looking for, and he wouldn't be able to articulate it, is anything that's going to allow for healing, things that he's missed out on.
What's Dom really representative of to him? He's the father and the older brother he never had. It's not a buddy. Brian doesn't even realize it. He gave up on having that kind of family or life before he even knew it was possible, and I don't think he ever thought it could be as great as what he has. - [on "The Fast & the Furious" franchise and being real and authentic]: That's what's capturing people, unless of course you're doing The Avengers (2012) where you've gotta be larger than life and you've gotta be out there and turn green and drag your arm down the side of a building, and jump all over the place. But for us, I like having (special effects) to fall back on. You allow the creative minds to get in there and figure out how to do it real, and it gives you more to be proud of.
- [on working on Hours (2013)]: What I've found recently is the heart, the soul, whatever you want to call it, it doesn't differentiate: If you really live the experience making a movie, it's the same as living it in real life, as crazy as it sounds. My victory in that movie was my victory in real life. You walk away with that, walking a little taller and a pop in your collar. You learn a lot about yourself. It's heroic in a different way. We're pretty awesome when we're tested. Call it the human spirit or whatever you want, I like celebrating our victories.
- [on what he hopes to achieve before he dies]: I missed out on a lot when I was younger because of this game [acting]. I think people tell you you are a certain thing and so you miss out on a lot you would have otherwise experienced. Inside I still feel certain things calling me. That's why I was doing the shark tagging recently and will be doing it again in two weeks on an island off Hawaii. I'm also going to go do the Grouper spawning. (2013)
- [on the amount of films he has coming out over the next two years]: ... It's so funny, my daughter now lives with me full time and my original plan was to work up until I was 40 then reassess my life, even go in a completely different direction with things. She keeps encouraging me to do all this stuff. I thought at this point in my life I would need to be home with her, but she wants me to keep acting so she can travel around the world with me. Would that be so bad? Thing is, I went to a born-again Christian high school, was brought up in a traditional Mormon family where these ideas about parenting are of structure and sacrifice. To think outside of that idea of family and parenting that I've grown up with is tough, but also very freeing. (2013)
- [describing himself] Outdoorsman, ocean addict, adrenaline junkie... and I do some acting on the side.
- [2011] It's irresponsible, and it smells horrible. A pack of cigarettes in her bag is a reason to keep walking.
- I'm Brian a lot more than I'm Paul Walker, which is awesome. When I hear, 'Hey Paul Walker!' my hair stands up on the back of my neck. It's uncomfortable. But when I hear, 'It's Brian!' it's cool. I like Brian.
- I learned a long time ago that if you subscribe and believe the good, you have to believe the bad. My measure is my heart and what I know. Read more at:
- Maybe this is just horrible bad, but I think I've had enough successes to where the journey is more important to me now. There's no guarantee, no matter what. We get one run in life.
- Sometimes the hurdles aren't really hurdles at all. They're welcome challenges, tests.
- I'm not afraid of anything. That's just the way I am.
- I'm one of those people that think certain things happen at certain times for all the right reasons.
- There's a time and place for everything, but as I get older, I like finding those human moments and really connecting. Maybe I'm not as cool as I once was.
- My philosophy is: If you can't have fun, there's no sense in doing it.
- We're only on the earth for a short period of time. Movies aren't enough. I want to take my success and parlay it into something bigger and better.
- Attitude is attitude, whether you're a West Coast gangster or East Coast gangster, you know?
- You know, all that really matters is that the people you love are happy and healthy. Everything else is just sprinkles on the sundae.
- I live by 'Go big or go home.' That's with everything. It's like either commit and go for it or don't do it at all. I apply that to everything. I apply that to relationships, I apply that to like sports, I apply that to everything. That's what I live by. That's how I like it.
- I don't care what it is in life: listen to your heart. If you do, no matter what, you win.
- When I was younger, the pressure was just being cool. I never thought of myself as a cool guy. I always thought of myself as more of the goofy guy.
- The dream is to have it all. Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too? Live this life, that life, this life, you know? You only live one time - I want to get it all in
- I want to wake up next to what I went to bed with. I need a girl who can get dressed up to come with me to things, but also one who isn't afraid to get her fingernails dirty or chip her nail polish.
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