Brendan Gleeson has told RTÉ Entertainment that luck has played a part in his onscreen success, but that an actor also has to be ready when an opportunity arises.
The Dubliner is currently in cinemas in the gangster thriller Live by Night which is directed by and stars Ben Affleck.
Based on the Dennis Lehane book of the same name and set during the Prohibition era, Live by Night chronicles the rise to power of self-styled Boston outlaw Joe Coughlin (Affleck), with Gleeson playing his put-upon police captain father Thomas in a story of fate and family, luck and loyalty.
After working with directors including Steven Spielberg, Danny Boyle, Martin Scorsese and Ridley Scott over the past two decades - and having now crossed Affleck off the wishlist - Gleeson was asked by RTÉ Entertainment if he agreed with Live by Night's assertion that "The foundation of your life is luck. Hard work and talent make up the difference."
"I'm trying to remember what the line was [in the film]," Gleeson replied. "I think he [Affleck] says, 'You make your own luck'. And I say to him, 'Sometimes luck makes you'."
"I think there's aspects of truth in both of those things," he continued. "You've got to be prepared when something breaks your way, and you've got to be prepared when something doesn't break your way. And then if it breaks or not is in the lap of the gods.
"I think there's no point getting a break if you're not ready for it. So that's the trouble - you've got to get ready and then you're never quite sure if it's going to happen or not!"
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The combination of luck and hard work means we will again be seeing plenty of Gleeson on the big screen in the year ahead.
He will be seen opposite Assassin's Creed co-star Michael Fassbender in crime thriller Trespass Against Us (released March 3); WWII drama Alone in Berlin (March 10) and Paddington 2 (November 10).
Gleeson is also playing the lead role of retired detective Bill Hodges in the upcoming TV adaptation of Stephen King's whodunit Mr Mercedes.
