Good news: Richard Kind will (probably) make your movie

Say what you will about the many and varied terrible things that have happened in the world over the past 10 years, but at least we all seem to be on the same page regarding Richard Kind. Upside down, There are only murders in the building, John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s In It THEREor one of the hundreds of other projects than the old one The rotating city And Crazy about you After Star’s work, we all seem to have finally come to the conclusion that most projects can be improved by the addition of a little Kind.

Luckily for all of us, “most projects” is apparently what Kind is inclined to say yes to; in a very amusing interview the actor gave to Vulture This week, Kind estimates that he accepts “93 percent” of the projects that come his way. Granted, Kind is a naturally talkative and funny guy, and he may be exaggerating here, but he makes it clear that he’s just Really likes to work (and get paid to work):

I recently did a low-budget movie, there were five people on the crew. The director was the one who did the boards. Why am I doing this? I love acting. What else am I going to do on a Tuesday and Wednesday? I could go play golf, but I’ve got plenty of golf already. This movie had a cool part in it and I helped a guy who probably spent his last dime. He said he was editing car commercials, but he wanted to write, direct and act. So I said, “Yeah, okay, I’ll do it.” It took two days of my life. I got to act. So that’s one of the reasons.

The main reason is I have three kids in college. I’m going to prostitute myself because I have to pay for their education. You have to understand that I’m a character actor. I’m friends with a lot of people who are big-budget movie makers. The most obvious one is George Clooney. When George Clooney says yes to a movie, industries spring up: laundry, catering, hotels, other actors, writers, editors, all the special effects, the city where it might be shot, and the shareholders who invest in the studio hoping to make money. There’s a lot of pressure on that guy. I don’t have any pressure. People say to me, “Why are you taking this? Didn’t you know it was horrible?” I took it because it’s not on me. I’m an actor for hire. That’s what I do. They pay me, it’ll make me famous, and it might lead to other jobs—those are the reasons I take it. I wish I could say that the challenge is the main reason, but it’s because I get offered roles and I love acting. I accept about 93% of the jobs.

• Richard Kind on blowing his Married… with children audition, and why he loves working with John Mulaney
• Richard Kind Gives Seth Meyers the Key to a Perfect Richard Kind Impersonation

(All this, And Kind tells an anecdote about getting mad at Daniel Day Lewis for showing up at a PTA meeting one time. “I said, ‘You know, I’m so mad at you.’ And he said, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘Because I wanted to be the most famous dad in the class.'” Richard Kind: A delight.)