While most actors say they felt validated after winning an Oscar, Dreyfuss admits that he felt like he made worse choices after winning one. He reveals, “It probably made me turn down some things I would probably not have thought of turning down had I not won the award. You’re riskier when you’re on the hunt.”
Of course, even Oscar-winners like Dreyfuss face challenges — and many of them are internal and ego-driven. He explains, “I’d been acting since I was 9. So, sure, I had my years of apprenticing. And while I was never uncertain I would finally succeed, I did have my years of bad acting and losing jobs before I ever became prominent in the public eye. I also had a firm grasp on a great sense of denial. I kept thinking I was the greatest actor since cottage cheese, and then when I looked back at the work I was doing at that time, I thought, ‘Holy moly, why didn’t they just lock me up and throw away the key?’”
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