Law Schools

Thank God This Beloved Actor’s Parents Didn’t Encourage Him To Go To Law School

To quote one of his most popular characters, 'That's what she said.'

Steve Carell (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)

I was actually about to apply to law school, but first my parents sat me down and we made up a list of what I really liked to do in life. Acting kept coming up. My parents looked at each other and said, “You don’t want to go to law school. Why not give acting a real shot?”

— Actor Steve Carrell, in comments made about his choice to pursue acting instead of going to law school. Carell said when he was younger, becoming an actor “didn’t sound like a legitimate career choice,” while becoming a lawyer was a “real job.”


Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.