Molly Gordon

“To hear someone say that they don't deserve happiness, or deserve to give happiness, is a horrific statement.”

“I get to explore things that are really near and dear to my heart. Can we accept love? Can we have a work life and a romantic life?”

“The day before I graduated high school, I ran into a parked car. It happened in the daytime, completely sober. Their car was pretty much completely fine and my car was completely totaled.”

“When my parents introduced me to Robert Altman and John Cassavetes movies, I was just so floored with the freedom that they both allowed their actors to have, and I was like, 'Oh my god, I want to create a space where people can play in that way.' And Nora Ephron.”

“It was so hard to get people to understand that kids could improvise. But I actually think they're much better than adults, because they're so free and not in their heads and not jaded.”

“For me, it's not about the size of the role. It's about the film-maker, script and character.”

“I love creativity, where there just isn't one right answer.”

“I have a pair of vintage loafers that I wear with everything - and then like, 15 different polka dot dresses, so this is just kind of my vibe I would say.”

“This business can be isolating, so having other people show me how to handle it has been so helpful.”

“The best comedy comes from having real moments, heart and all. You can't just have people making jokes over and over and over again.”

“Elaine Stritch is my style icon and she never wore pants.”

“You always get do-overs in life, unless you do something really bad. It's okay to mess up. I wish I could go back in time and tell my high school and my middle school self not to sweat the small stuff.”

“I'm such a comedy nerd and a Groundlings nerd, 'SNL' nerd.”

“If anyone wants to hire me, what a treat. I'll do anything.”

“I grew up watching 'SNL' and going to The Groundlings' shows in L.A. So that's kind of where I more saw myself going. But then I got cast on this very dark show called 'Animal Kingdom,' which is the literal opposite.”

“My mom lost her mom at a very early age, and she was so excited to be a mother. Sometimes that can translate into a too-much thing, but in my childhood it was just like, 'I want to enjoy this, and I want my daughter to because I didn't get to enjoy this.'”

“That is what sucks about improv a little bit, is that some of the funniest stuff actually can't be in the film because it doesn't make sense for the plot, but it's the funniest stuff ever.”

“I would literally have played a rag on 'The Bear.' I just wanted to be around that set.”

“I think getting to be on 'The Bear.' A lot of times it's like, 'Oh, I didn't catch that.' Or, 'I watched it on a plane!' So to get to be on something that's so in the zeitgeist is so cool, and I feel very lucky to be part of that.”

“I think that all those women that I look up to so much just ground their comedy in realism and don't try to make the funny.”