Dustin Hoffman on Career Longevity: ‘Life Is Easier If You’re Nice’ (Exclusive)

Dustin Hoffman and Leo Woodall are dishing on their crime thriller “Tuner."

The film follows a gifted piano prodigy (Woodall) whose meticulous ear for pitch leads him to discover an unexpected, high-stakes aptitude for safe-cracking. Hoffman plays his veteran mentor.

Leo opened up to "Extra" about working with an icon like Dustin.

Leo admitted, “It was a huge incentive for me, obviously, to get to work with one of my heroes. It was also quite intimidating, but, you know, he’s an incredibly generous man but also a very generous actor. He pulls you into the world of make believe in a way that I’d never experience before with another actor.”

While Dustin described his character as “prick,” he is beloved both on and off-screen! What’s the key for a long-lasting career?

He answered, “Life is easier if you’re nice to people. It's just easier."

Dustin noted that it's easier to say yes to signing autographs than no, explaining, “If you say no, there’s an expression that you see on their face where you have reduced them and that’s going to make you unhappy for hours. 'Why the f***, why did I do that? Why didn't I just sign it?'"

Leo agreed, "That's a really wonderful philosophy on life... It costs nothing to be kind."

Hoffman also opened up about writing his memoir, sharing, "It's interesting because I didn’t expect it to be as painful as it is because you’re writing about something that’s past, and that means it’s not gonna happen again, and that’s the hard part, I guess. That part of my life over and all I have now is this limited amount of time.”

Dustin emphasized, “When you’re younger, you don’t think of life as being limited. It's unlimited, it's just gonna go on. But if you’re smart, you realize that every day is a miracle."

He said of the writing process, "And I guess the pleasure of it is that — I don't know the pleasure, because it's work."

He quipped, "But at least you're getting it down there before you can't remember whether you took a bath this morning or a shower that morning, which is gonna be soon. I say to my wife, 'Lisa, did I shower already.' Short-term memory is aptly named."