| JONNY
SINKS HIS TEETH IN PART
Their marriage was regarded as one of the most bizarre in
showbusiness - the shy, young British actor and the Hollywood
wild child. Consequently most people weren't surprised when
the union between Jonny Lee Miller and Angelina Jolie broke
down after just a couple of years.
But far from regretting his short-lived marriage Miller has
nothing but glowing praise for his ex-wife.
"Angelina's image is of a wild, crazy, femme fatale," he says.
"But she's not. She's a very nice big hearted girl. It wasn't
extraordinary at all that we were together."
The pair were unknowns when they met on the set of the movie
Hackers, but since then they've both gone on to achieve
international success.
Jolie is now an Oscar winning star and will soon be seen in
one of this year's most eagerly awaited movies Tomb Raider
while Miller has a string of successes behind him, including
Trainspotting and Regeneration. But while Jolie
has embarked on another, much-publicised second marriage to
actor Billy Bob Thornton, Miller has remained single.
Despite a high-profile romance with All Saints singer Natalie
Appleton - they were dubbed 'London's coolest couple' - the
29-year-old star says he's still looking for love.
"I'm looking for the same kind of thing as everyone else,"
he admits. "But I can't approach women, I'm not really like
that."
In fact Miller is possibly one of the shyest and most self-effacing
people in showbusiness who says he not only finds it difficult
to talk about himself but also can't bear to watch his on
screen performances.
"I'm never that pleased with anything I do," he admits. "I
find it very confusing and tend not to like my own performances
very much. It's a work in progress, really, you always look
at it and think you could do it better. I'm very critical
about my own work."
Despite his own self-criticism Miller is regarded as one of
Britain's hottest young actors and is now in big demand in
Hollywood too.
His latest starring role is in the big budget blockbuster
horror Dracula 2001 and comes from horror maestro Wes
Craven (A Nightmare on Elm Street).
In the film Miller plays vampire slayer Simon Sheppard, who
takes on thewrath of Dracula (Gerard Butler) after the Prince
of Darkness rises from the dead again causing murder and mayhem
in contemporary London and in New Orleans.
It's the latest big-screen outing for the eponymous blood-sucker
and as a big fan of the genre, Miller says he'd always wanted
a part in a horror movie.
"I can remember seeing An American Werewolf in London
when I was little and it was terrifying," he recalls gleefully.
"One of the scariest movies I've ever seen is Jacob's Ladder.
"I think the Dracula story remains popular because it's to
do with the attractive side of evil, you're immortal, you
can do whatever you want and get away with it. It's the seduction
side of it, people are into that. Sex is a big thing these
days and that's a big part of the vampire thing.
"I really wanted to do this because it was something I hadn't
done before, and I thought the script had a lot of humour
in it. I thought it would be really interesting."
But even though he enjoyed getting his teeth into Dracula
2001 Miller says his love of experimenting means he probably
won't be embarking on another horror movie.
"I don't go in for doing the same kind of thing twice generally,"
he explains. His varied career has included successes on the
big screen, in theatre and on TV and he's also a member of
the esteemed Nylon Production team, along with his good friends
and fellow Britpackers Jude Law, Sadie Frost, Ewan McGregor
and Sean Pertwee.
The entrepreneurial bunch, who have a number of projects on
the go, all live in London's Primrose Hill and Miller says
that's where he intends to stay, despite a flourishing career
in Hollywood.
"I really wouldn't want to live in America," he says. "I found
New York claustrophobic and dirty. I missed England when I
was there, simple things like smells and the British sense
of humour."
But even though he doesn't intend to move to LA permanently
Miller says he does want to branch out on the career front.
"I'm currently working on a film in Ireland called The
Escapist," he says. "But in the future I see myself doing
more theatre, directing and I'm going to give writing a go."
And not even the prospect of hitting 30 next year can dampen
his enthusiasm. "I m looking forward to turning 30," he beams.
"I feel like I've been in my late 20s forever."
View this article here
|
