I didn't dream about being a director. I didn't know I wanted to do something with film until the summer between my sophomore and junior years at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia.

I’m very careful about how I portray violence in my films. I do believe that violence, especially violent video games, are not a good thing for young kids.

Amongst black people, you have always heard it said that once a black man reaches a certain level, especially if you are an entertainer, you get a white trophy woman. I didn’t make that up.

What’s the difference between Hollywood characters and my characters? Mine are real.

I’ll be vilified if I shoot a film in Toronto for New York. And rightfully so!

Surprises are good. I’m not of the thinking where you tell the audience everything. Sometimes I don’t even want to see the trailers. You see the trailer, you’ve seen the movie.

I’m always open to new, innovative stuff and people trying to do stuff in a different way. I knew that the theatrical release would be like getting on the launch pad for Amazon Prime but I was okay with that because I think what Jeff Bezos and Ted Hope are doing is innovative.

I’m not the go-to guy. Everybody is trying to tell their story and have different ways of telling it.

I don’t see any negativity with what Brad Pitt is doing with his Make It Right Foundation, or what Sean Penn is trying to do in Haiti.

When I went to school, you had to take art, you had to play an instrument. You had to play an instrument. But it’s all degraded since then. I do not know what kind of nation we are that is cutting art, music, and gym out of the public-school curriculum.