Clive Owen: Warrior King

Because he kind of reminds everyone of a young Sean Connery (the very first James Bond), sexy, tall, dark and handsome Brit Clive Owen has been pestered to play the part after Pierce Brosnan abdicates the 007 throne but ended up sitting on another, more ancient throne as King Arthur instead.

Owen first came to our attention outside of Britain when several of his BBC TV series were shown on public television. The actor had his bad times on unemployment after college but, like his King Arthur co-star Ioan Gruffudd, he was accepted to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and played roles in the classics at the Young Vic Theatre Company.

Clive became more familiar with U.S. audiences more recently as the only  recurring character in BMW's series of short-films by directors such as Ang Lee and Guy Ritchie and a memorable performance opposite Matt Damon in 2002's The Bourne Identity. He was mega-hunky as an international relief worker who has an affair with Angelina Jolie in 2003's Beyond Borders. Charming, suave Clive admits that the James Bond thing is just a rumor and that he took the part of a macho King Arthur, who goes into battle on horseback a lot, without knowing how to ride....at all!

TeenHollywood: How many times have you been asked if you are the new James Bond?

Clive. (laughs) Every time I'm interviewed. I think Pierce Brosnan is a fantastic Bond, I think he is really invigorated the whole franchise, he has made that company a lot of money and they should be banking it in saying 'he's our man' till he steps down. Lets just leave it at that.

TeenHollywood: But, if the Bond thing ever did happen for you, how would you make it your own?

Clive: Of course that is the deal you make if you take on something like that. You keep all options open and keep it as varied as possible. I have three films that are all coming out this year. I like to keep mixing it up.

TeenHollywood: What were the challenges of playing a legendary character like King Arthur?

Clive: It was a radical take on the  story so it felt like a fresh, new film. You don't play heroic, you can't act that, you play the part and you hope that the writing and the situations and the way it is directed support you.

TeenHollywood: So what is this new King Arthur like?

Clive: I see the character as a guy who has very strong beliefs and the challenge that he has to change. His whole belief system is changing, the world is changing, Rome is changing. He has enormous faith and that faith is being challenged.

TeenHollywood: Can you identify with him? Personally in any way?

Clive: No, but I don't think you necessarily have to identify. You have to want  to play it and want to commit to the lines. The characters don't necessarily have to be virtuous. They just have to be human. I am much more interested in playing something that is going on on the surface while something else is going on underneath. That's what acting is. Drama is conflict. It's just more interesting.

TeenHollywood: Okay, Clive, what is this we hear about you and not riding horses before this film?

Clive: That was a big deal. It was a very big deal and I was totally in denial. Suddenly the movie is on horseback and nobody has asked me if I could ride, so I didn't bring it up. I just had this little sort of headache hammering me, going 'what do you think you're doing? You can't ride a horse.' I went on one five days a week for those two months (before filming).

TeenHollywood: So how difficult was it for you?

Clive: I arrived at the stable that morning and told Robert (the horse stunt guy)  'start me from scratch'. There was a little bomb proof fat horse saddled up and I said 'let me tell you one thing, if I got my way, I would stay on that one forever'. I was guided by him (Robert) and every few days I got on a bigger horse. And I would say 'am I ready for this one?' Finally, I had actually got very, very good on a horse and we went 'this is the one for the movie'.

TeenHollywood: So that was the horse you ride in the film?

Clive: Uh, no. There was this Spanish horse with fire coming out of the nostrils. It was huge, it was muscles like you wouldn't believe. I was thinking 'this isn't going to work', but two weeks later you couldn't get me off this animal, I was like, 'I love this horse! In the end I was pretty fearless.

TeenHollywood: Did you keep him like Viggo Mortensen did the horse from Hidalgo?

Clive: I only have a 55 foot garden in London, so I don't think it would be fair (to him).

TeenHollywood: We hear you had a lot to say about the costume you wore. You wanted black leather pants?

Clive: We were having ideas about costumes and for the Roman period we  were thinking of doing a Roman skirt thing and I said 'if you think I am spending six months on a horse with nothing on my legs, you got another thing coming, I want to be comfortable'. And we arrived at leather trousers.

TeenHollywood: This King Arthur tale is not the typical romantic one. Did that surprise you?

Clive: I was very surprised. I didn't know that much about King Arthur. We researched. The Roman Empire was collapsing and pulling out of Britain. The King Arthur story was a half Roman half Britain thing,

TeenHollywood: How do you think the audience is going to react? Do you think they are going to come into it thinking of the big Arthur/Lancelot/Guinevere love triangle?

Clive: The trailers  are a very good example of what the film is. It has got dynamite, I mean it is not the Arthur we have seen, it is not the pretty romantic version. It's a dynamic new take on the whole thing.

TeenHollywood: What would be more interesting to you, to do a prequel to this Arthur story or a sequel?

Clive: I always saw the film ending where the (Arthur) myths begin. The end of the movie is the beginning of people talking about the stories of Arthur and his knights.

TeenHollywood: Everyone says Keira was a real tiger on this movie.

Clive: (smiling) She is a fearsome boxer let me tell you. We have a trainer on the set.  We have a little gym thing and whenever we had down time you could go and keep fit, and we could box as well. I used to go past at lunchtime and there she was full on with the keeping fit thing.

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Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.