Arnold Vosloo

(on being typecast as a villain) Arnold: Hey, if Hollywood wants to pay me the big bucks to be a bad guy, bring it on, I say.

Arnold: At first I was delighted to get the job. And then I was filled with fear. You know what you're doing when you play the Mummy. Boris Karloff was the best known Mummy of all, and it's a tough gig to fill his shoes. I was feared out, but realized the way to go would be to make it my own. Steven Sommers told me a number of times "Make it your own and we'll be in good shape."

Arnold: More importantly however it was an opportunity to almost, like a Kabuki actor, play emotional in a comic-book way. Use your face, your body and a make-believe-language. Part of the reason I wanted to play the Mummy was also to see if I could do it. I wanted to see if I can grunt my way through it. It turned out very well and I was very pleased with the result.

Arnold: For some reason people don't remember my name. It's a phenomenon, but I'm partly guilty for that, in that I don't have a publicist. I don't care much for the celebrity. If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't. I'm not running away from stardom, but at the same time I am not seeking it.

Arnold: There's not a day that goes by that I don't miss South Africa. It's beautiful here, it's perfect but... I miss South Africa. I miss my friends and family, I miss the place, miss how it smells, sunsets... I left there when I was in my late 20s, and it was almost too late to really assimilate and say, "I'm going to become an American."

(about his costume in The Mummy) Arnold: I'm no Mr. Fitness, but I had done some exercise. When I finally got to London, they showed me my costume, and it was like the size of a postage stamp.

(when asked what his major ambition is) Arnold: To redo Peckinpah's Bring me the Head of Alfredo Garcia.

Arnold: (concerning money) You know, maybe because I can now afford things I used to dream of, I no longer want them. I test drove a Porsche the other day and then I thought, 'Do I really need this?' I am quite happy in my bakkie.

Arnold: Luck. I have been thinking about this. Many people might think that luck has played a major part in my success. But it is more complicated than that. I really did time to get where I am.

Arnold: Before I went into movies my father said, 'Whatever you do, don't sleep with anyone on set'. I never have.

(on his role in The Mummy Returns) Arnold: I joke that I'm the romantic lead in the movie, I just happened to pick the wrong girl. Imhotep is kind of the tragic villain, I guess, and a lot of people have come up to me and said I was hating you, but then I reach a point when I was feeling sorry for you too. It's those different facets that help explain why this film is such a success.