Carrey about his character, Joel, in ESOTSM : "It's one of those rare times where you are involved in something that makes you thankful for your painful experiences," says Jim. "I could not have played the part without living it."
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As successful as he may be, Carrey waxes lyrical when it comes to discussing the effects of that success on his love life, or lack thereof. He has no idea whether his private life has suffered as a result of his ever-burgeoning success.: "Not because of my CAREER necessarily. Maybe I focus a lot on that so that becomes the driving force. I don't know what the answer to relationship is. I know that I am basically a very simple guy who values a real relationship." At present, Carrey says that he is "having fun dating. I don't have a steady, but it's still okay and cool." Carrey is unconcerned as to whether or not women are attracted to Carrey the man or the image that he projects. "I don't spend a lot of my life trying to figure out what people's intentions are; I let THEM screw up. If I meet somebody who comes at me with a friendly face and it is not a friendly face, then ultimately that's their hell. I try to trust people right out of the gate and that's just how I approach it. Otherwise, you get completely paranoid and end up in a room growing your fingernails," he concludes laughingly.