I'm not expecting awards. I want the Philippine audience to troop to the theaters. I did not make the movies for that [awards]. I just want the movies to make money so that the industry can get back on its feet.

With "Batman and Robin," I was opening toy stores in Sydney, Australia. I had awards for selling more "Batman" merchandise than any human being in the world.

A lot of the people who watch the Academy Awards don't go to movies. So what's on stage is the only performance of yours they're going to see.

Ever since Fahrenheit 9/11 , I think we've been seeing there's a real audience for movies with political agendas. I don't know how many people are showing up because they want to hear political messages, but they're certainly more open to hearing them.

It's the first time there will be Asian Excellence Awards handed out for performances on TV, movies and the theater. Now that you have Asians starting to break through in mainstream TV, it's appropriate to recognize them. AZN is designed for Asian-Americans, but we believe everyone has an interest in this programming.

people see so many movies that when they finally see one not so bad as the others, they think it's great. an Academy Award means that you don't stink quite as much as your cousin.