Check out this list of the top 40 Set It Off quotes that’ll resonate with anyone looking for a movie that will offer a new perspective on life!
Set It Off features four working-class inner-city women struggling to make ends meet. Having a hard time finding a job to sustain their lives, they decided to rob a bank. This decision led to a series of events no one anticipated—they’re thrown into drama, action, and many surprises.
Beyond the intensity and chaos, the movie also offered a unique perspective on friendship and societal issues. Yes, finding a deep connection with other people—your friends—is something to be treasured.
But, Set It Off is also an important movie that highlights the realities of Black women in society.
It may be a work of fiction, but the true-to-life portrayal of the world’s workings makes it worth watching over and over.
Here’s a collection of our favorite quotes from the movie! Make sure you don’t miss out and read through to the end.
Start here.
And don’t forget to check out these Point Break quotes and Die Hard quotes.
Best Set It Off Quotes
1. “Don’t you lose that friend over money. It’s not worth it. Money you can replace easy. Friends, real friends, you can’t.” – Keith Weston
2. “So, what’s the procedure when you have a gun to your head? What’s the f*cking procedure when you have a gun to your head?” – Francesca Sutton
3. “Sh*t, we ain’t robbing stagecoaches, man! We need something to set it off with.” – Cleopatra Sims
4. “Look, we’re just taking away from the system that’s f*cking us all anyway. You know?” – Francesca Sutton
5. “Look at all your friends. They all own banks. Where I’m from, you’re lucky to have a bank account.” – Lida Newsom
6. “Stony, you know how long you told me that I had to go to college? Well, I’m sorry, but maybe that life just isn’t for me.” – Stevie Newsom
7. Keith Weston: “What are your plans? I mean, where do you see yourself, say, in five years?”
Cleopatra Sims: “But I ain’t thinking about five years from now. I’m just trying to get through the day.”
Set It Off Quotes to Prove That Money Makes the World Go Round
8. “Money got you tripping.” – Lida Newsom
9. “We need some real money. I don’t know how far out of town you plan to get, baby sister. But you ain’t getting far on three grand.” – Cleopatra Sims
10. Cleopatra Sims: “Damn. Before they started laying people off, they was paying folks $15 an hour at that place.”
Keith Weston: “Oh, man, that’s good money.”
11. “F*ck! For $15 an hour, I’d be all full ply radial. What I gotta do, sir? Motherf*cker. They’d have to pull me off that machine.” – Cleopatra Sims
Also read: Heat Quotes, Set It Off Quotes
Set It Off Quotes That’ll Make You Question Their Decisions
12. “Now, the problem is, they are on our backs now. And we got to do two things: rob another bank and get the f*ck out of here. Or we gonna be in jail by tomorrow morning.” – Cleopatra Sims
13. Francesca Sutton: “I know you out of money by now, Cleo. Now what you going to do?
Cleopatra Sims: “Rob another godd*mn bank! What the f*ck is ya’ll thinkin’?”
14. Francesca Sutton: “The only way we gonna see cash is if we take a bank.”
Cleopatra Sims: “Now see I’m with that sh*t!”
Lida Newsom: “Ya’ll n*ggas done lost ya’ll mind. We might as well not even talk about this sh*t no more.”
Francesca Sutton: “Well I’m talkin’ ’bout it. And ain’t nobody gonna stop me from—.”
Lida Newsom: “Well talk is cheap, nigga!”
15. Luther: “What the hell? Cleo, I know you ain’t come to work. Ain’t been to work and don’t call nobody!”
Cleopatra Sims: “I’m broke, Luther! Now I know you gonna give me my old job back ‘cos nobody can take sh*t the way I take sh*t. Now shut up before I stick that mop up your *ss, Luther.”
16. Mr. Zachery: “What happens the next time one of your friends robs the bank? How do we know you’re not in collusion?”
Francesca Sutton: “In collusion? Let me tell you something. I am here at 8:20 sharp every morning and I work my *ss off until quitting time. Yesterday, I counted $240,000 by hand for you. That’s how you should know. I mean, come on. This is just not right. I nearly got blown away in your tight-*ss f*cking bank, and you’re going to fire me? You couldn’t even wait.”
17. Detective Strode: “So, why is it, if that procedure’s been drummed into your head a million times. You got that procedure down. Why wouldn’t you follow it? Huh?”
Francesca Sutton: “Because he had a gun! And I went for my clip, but he shot her! He shot her right in front of me!”
Mr. Zachery: “I’m afraid, Miss Sutton, that we’re going to have to let you go. The fact that you knew the perpetrator doesn’t sit well with us.”
Francesca Sutton: “Wait, wait. But that’s not right. I haven’t done anything wrong! I can’t help who I know! Mr. Zachery, just last week, you gave me a promotion. Now you’re going to take my job away from me like this?”
Also read: The Town Quotes
Sassy Set It Off Quotes for a Good Laugh
18. “What part of ‘No.’ don’t you understand, Strode? The ‘N’ or the ‘O’?” – Captain Fredricks
19. “Man, Luther can kiss my ashy knee cap.” – Cleopatra Sims
20. “Cleo, you are real high and you acting real stupid.” – Lida Newsom
21. Tisean Williams: “Cleo, I don’t think you should be drinking so much coffee. You’re making me nervous.”
Cleopatra Sims: “How the f*ck is my drinking coffee making you nervous?”
Also read: Blood In Blood Out Quotes, Paid in Full Quotes
Set It Off Quotes to Brighten Your Day
22. “I thought a roomful of dead bankers meant that, uh, the world would be a better place.” – Tisean Williams
23. “Countin’ all this money is harder than working for Luther. Ha ha ha!” – Cleopatra Sims
24. “Frankie wanna blow up a bank, uh. Frankie wanna rob a bank, uh.” – Lida Newsom
25. Francesca Sutton: “Cleo, you go to survey the line for the cow.”
Cleopatra Sims: “Cow? There’s gonna be a cow up in there?”
Lida Newsom: “Stop smoking weed.”
26. “You know what I can use right now? I can use a banana flambé.” – Lida Newsom
27. Lida Newsom: “Frankie, please! Please, ain’t nobody here gonna rob no bank!”
Francesca Sutton: “No, let’s just go in’er and blow it the f*ck up!”
28. “I am quite content just listening to you. Sitting here. Staring into those beautiful, pretty brown eyes. Are you cross-eyed?” – Keith Weston
29. “On this good earth there are three people I don’t mess with. The ‘I,’ the ‘R,’ and the ‘S.’” – Francesca Sutton
30. “And now sit back, relax, load off your feet. Smell the aroma of Mexico and the sounds.” – Cleopatra Sims
Set It Off Quotes to Remind You of Your Favorite Scenes
31. “We can do this. We can get some wigs, some sunglasses and it’s on.” – Francesca Sutton
32. “What are you looking at? I’m a motherf*cker with a gun. Two!” – Cleopatra Sims
33. Francesca Sutton: “Look, she didn’t do anything. She walked out!”
Cleopatra Sims: “Who the f*ck cares? She was there.”
Francesca Sutton: “No, f*ck that! She didn’t do nothin’ so she ain’t gettin’ nothin’!”
Tisean Williams: “Forget it! Frankie, I don’t want your money. Now if you wanna kick my *ss then come on let’s just get it over with ‘cos I am sick of your sh*t! I need that money.”
34. Lida Newsom: “Don’t you tell me not to go off on you. Do you have any idea what I had to go through? Do you?”
Stevie Newsom: “I’m not staying around for this.”
Lida Newsom: “You are going to hang around for this, and don’t you move. Why did you have to lie to me?”
Set It Off Quotes That Feature the Characters’ Soft Sides
35. “Look, I’m sorry. You’re sorry. Let’s just put it all behind us.” – Cleopatra Sims
36. “You said we weren’t gonna hurt anybody, Frankie.” – Lida Newsom
37. Keith Weston: “Stony, I’m glad you’re safe.”
Lida Newsom: “I am. Thank you.”
Short Set It Off Quotes That Live in Our Heads Rent-Free
38. “We gotta act like nothing’s different.” – Tisean Williams
39. “Now, you need to get to Luther’s and get your job back.” – Lida Newsom
40. “All right then. We’re back in effect.” – Francesca Sutton
Did These Quotes Change the Way You View Society?
Our world is increasingly becoming a place where it is harder to survive. Sometimes, it feels like people have lost their morals and do things out of desperation. Set It Off was able to communicate this reality to all its viewers.
When you come from poverty, it’s almost impossible to get out of it. In most situations, it’s not because you’re not willing to work hard to live a better life. It’s all because of how society functions as a whole—you work and work and work, but the very foundations and systems of society keep you chained back.
This system will be hard to break, and sadly, the system will seldom be in our favor. This is why we must work together to bring about a long and lasting change that people will actually benefit from. So stand up, be firm, and keep the faith.
With that, we hope you were able to get a glimpse of the more profound lessons that Set It Off was trying to impart. Let your four favorite protagonists lead you to a life with purpose.
Which quote is your favorite? Are there other good Set It Off quotes you’d like us to add? Join the discussion below!
