Ethan Hawke feels as though his latest Oscar nomination is a full circle moment in his career

Ethan - who is yet to win despite an Oscar despite four previous nominations - told People: "I was the youngest in my category and now I'm the oldest.

"And it happened so fast. It feels like six years ago that Training Day came out to me in my brain, so it's hard not to think about a lifetime spent doing this.

"I'm incredibly grateful to be here and to still be doing this dance because I enjoy it a lot, but it does make you think a lot about time."

Hawke starred alongside Denzel Washington in Training Day, with the pair playing two Los Angeles police officers, and admits that he relished the chance to work with the acting legend.

Asked what he would say to his younger self, the Reality Bites star said: "I was having a great time in 2001. I don't know if I needed a lot of advice.

"I knew how fortunate I was to be there, to get to do this whole event with Denzel. He's one of the greatest actors who's ever lived, and so to get to ride shotgun - that wasn't lost on me what a special experience that was."

Ethan added: "I've always been patient. It wasn't like I was here like a bag of anxiety (or) nerves. I enjoyed every second, and I'm trying to do the same now."

Hawke portrays lyricist Lorenz Hart in Richard Linklater's movie Blue Moon and considers it to be one of the most challenging parts of his career.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, he explained: "There have been a handful [of roles] that have been extremely challenging. It's just one of the few jobs that's used everything I've learned over the years, from the physical stuff, to the vocal work, to the movement work, to the verbiage, to the text, to the ideas that we're trying to communicate. It was not a light lift."