Top 35 Renee O'Connor Quotes (2025 Update)

1. “Filmmaking in general is just really where I’m putting all of my energy.”

— Renee O'Connor

2. “We are always just trying to be strong and yet in touch with our bodies and the only way you can really do that is to believe in yourself because that’s all that you have.”

— Renee O'Connor

3. “I believe I have a lot to learn in life, still.”

— Renee O'Connor

4. “All the pictures in magazines and all of that is fun but in the end it’s all about your soul and who you are and have you connected with the people.”

— Renee O'Connor

5. “I hope that my work makes a difference because I think that’s why I do it.”

— Renee O'Connor

6. “It’s very hard to become an actor in film and television, you have to have such perseverance and you have to really believe that if you have any sort of talent at all, you will find work one day.”

— Renee O'Connor

7. “I’ve grown so much as a person through playing Gabrielle, much less living in New Zealand and being with all of these people that I can’t imagine my life being any different.”

— Renee O'Connor

8. “Painting is a hobby for me.”

— Renee O'Connor

9. “I wouldn’t say that I’m overly religious, but I have a pretty good relationship with my spiritual being.”

— Renee O'Connor

10. “I mean, I like to be creative because it challenges me to try to be better than I am as a person and I hope that in some way that that makes someone else think and feel something about themselves that then has given them the opportunity to grow.”

— Renee O'Connor

11. “I’ve been looking at oil paintings from oriental artists lately, and the one artist who’s inspired me right now is a man named Hokusai and I’ve had his book by my bed looking at how he interprets landscapes – mountains and water and flowers and birds.”

— Renee O'Connor

12. “I think I’ll always be a theater gypsy at heart.”

— Renee O'Connor

13. “Just believe in yourself and to find spirituality that’s going to carry you. Because all the rest is just fluff.”

— Renee O'Connor

14. “In film and television you have to be able to see the whole picture in a different way than you do on the stage because you shoot out of order and you’re working with technology.”

— Renee O'Connor

15. “When you think about going back to the States you start to become more aware of the violence there and how we pollute the Earth more than the New Zealanders.”

— Renee O'Connor

16. “I always thought I would be a marine biologist because I love the sea – but considering the fact that I’ve always loved acting and the theater, I don’t think I ever gave anything else much of a chance.”

— Renee O'Connor

17. “When Xena finished I just really wanted to work with Shakespeare’s material.”

— Renee O'Connor

18. “And not to mean that I think I’m some special person, but I think we’re all here for a very specific reason and once you figure out what that is then you’re on the right track and we’re all on the ride together.”

— Renee O'Connor

19. “Like when you go to a magic show and you know how they do the illusions. That’s how I am when I watch any movies where they have people flying through the air.”

— Renee O'Connor

20. “I love actors who are wonderful – like John Cusack and Russell Crowe, and wouldn’t it be a treat to eventually direct them one day.”

— Renee O'Connor

21. “But on stage you’re able to just take the character from one point to the end and it’s a fluid, organic piece. It’s about being completely present all the time, right there in the moment.”

— Renee O'Connor

22. “For me it’s all about creating a goal and fulfilling it.”

— Renee O'Connor

23. “And I think right now I’m just enjoying finding something such as One Weekend a Month where I can really resonate with this woman’s history and her situation.”

— Renee O'Connor

24. “I’m the type of person who feels I have to prove myself first.”

— Renee O'Connor

25. “I think you have to have different tools for each job – you know producer is very different from a director and very different from an actor.”

— Renee O'Connor

26. “And I think because there is an essence of me that cares about other people and what other people think then that then makes me seem very sweet and polite.”

— Renee O'Connor

27. “Actually I have to say when I’m acting, I try not to think about directing at all.”

— Renee O'Connor

28. “Maybe they say they do but I don’t think many actors really enjoy trying to do a Shakespearean play.”

— Renee O'Connor

29. “I fell in love with Africa while I was there.”

— Renee O'Connor

30. “But it just comes down to trying to get the work out there and however the team fits together then that’s the way it sort of plays into itself.”

— Renee O'Connor

31. “I believe over the last six years now, I’ve been learning in between actual acting moments on the show.”

— Renee O'Connor

32. “But on the other hand, I think as an actor, you tend to want to look at the darker parts of your psyche.”

— Renee O'Connor

33. “Because I’ve always been more afraid of writing than I have of doing anything visually such as directing or acting.”

— Renee O'Connor

34. “I think the joy of wanting to direct is having that nervous anxiety knowing your film is about to be shown and you’re sitting right there with everyone.”

— Renee O'Connor

35. “I find that actors who are wanting to pursue tv or films don’t seem to have much interest in classical theatre.”

— Renee O'Connor