Here's the thing: I think the media underestimates the intelligence of the moviegoer. We need to be fulfilled. People want to sit down and think, and I try to make people think.

- Lee Daniels

I love actors, and I'm very protective of them. I trust them. It's a mutual trust.

- Lee Daniels

I don't profess to be Shonda Rhimes by any stretch of the imagination, or Dick Wolf. They're icons. I'm a filmmaker.

- Lee Daniels

People enjoy making fun of people who are famous; they love putting people down.

- Lee Daniels

I'm in a great place because I trust people behind the camera as I go off, and I still go back to my day job and do film.

- Lee Daniels

I'm always more comfortable and in a good place when I'm with friends because I know they trust me. I'm able to get great performances from people who trust me.

- Lee Daniels