“Most action is based on redemption and revenge, and that’s a formula. Moby Dick was formula. It’s how you get to the conclusion that makes it interesting.”

I respect a woman too much to marry her.

If you’re willing to take the humiliation of sticking your head above the crowd, maybe it’s, you know, the pleasure will be worth the pain.

I’m a big believer that, in life, we can’t succeed in everything. Most times, we lose.

The more I go to church and the more I turn myself over to the process of believing in Jesus and listening to His Word and having Him guide my hand, I feel as though the pressure is off me now.

You are what you leave behind.

Action is always seen as the bottom rung of thespian endeavour, that’s just the way it is.

Gangster is the truest friend I can ever ask for.

I’m not a genetically superior person. I built my body.

I think that gravity sets into everything, including careers, but pendulums do swing and mountains do become valleys after a while if you keep on walking.

When crossing someone’s borders you have to be prepared to engage in a war that is far more brutal than if it were to take place on neutral territory.

I made some truly awful movies. ‘Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot’ was the worst. If you ever want someone to confess to murder just make him or her sit through that film. They will confess to anything after 15 minutes.

To me, the most perfect screenplay ever written will be one word, when you finally reduce it down to that. Until then, writing will be an imperfect form of communication.

The church is the gym of the soul.

I try to eliminate as much dialogue as possible, and I guess Rambo is my really best experiment with how to eliminate dialogue.

The only thing that I haven’t done is perform brain surgery on myself. I’ve been very, very lucky. I’ve spared Shakespeare undue stress by not doing that.

If you look back at life, I bet you will regret about 80% of your actions. But life consists of all mistakes.