Good scripts are hard to find.

In many films, as many different characters, I've killed many different people.

Every movie I get involved with I get involved in as big a level as I possibly can, but this has been a very much more personal journey for me, so bringing it here tonight there's a sense of relief, there's a sense of just amazement that got here... because it's been a struggle. But this is a good way to launch it and there couldn't be a better way of celebrating this movie than bringing it to the West End.

I genuinely was just such a fan of the books. When I heard that this was on the cards, I've got to do this; I've got to get involved with this. I'm such a Philip Pullman fan and actually his philosophies, morals and the way he looks at the world. He does what he does brilliantly as a writer. He writes children's stories with major adult themes and major ideas about making the right choices.

Obviously, when I came to do the movie I knew that I was going to have to take my clothes off so I might have worked a little bit harder to keep myself fit. But I think that's the irony of it - you see all these fit and healthy people, and I'm not making any comments on it, but everybody deep down is a f**k up somewhere.

It doesn't matter if you look a million dollars but everybody has their flaws. So that's why it had to be that way. He was living the life, he would stay out for three days probably, get drunk and do whatever he was doing and then hit the gym for two days. But that's the craziness of that lifestyle - you're damaging yourselves in more ways than one.

I stopped worrying about being desired a long time ago.