“I'm excited about 'Luke Cage' with Michael Colter, who plays Luke Cage...” — Mahershala Ali Quote

“I'm excited about 'Luke Cage' with Michael Colter, who plays Luke Cage. I play the villain, Cottonmouth. It takes place in Harlem. It'll just be amazing for people to get to see an African-American superhero, which there weren't any when I was growing up.”

“I remember clearly, when I was about 4, my Aunt Linda said, 'I'm not babysitting him no more. He's bad.' It was one of the first conscious shifts I remember making. I decided, 'I'm going to be good now.'”

“It's about very talented writers, directors, producers, and actors being in a position for their projects to be supported, but there's just not enough black projects being made.”

“I'd been taught from an early age that I was in the 'other' category on the standardized tests. You know, I had to go down the checklist - Caucasian, African-American, Latino, Asian-Pacific Islander, and then, you know, at the bottom is other. So, you know, very early on I was taught, in a way, that I was somehow this anomaly.”

“Most of the more celebrated names among African-American authors, poets, and artists are known to the world because of their association with specific cultural arts movements.”