Interview by Tom Johnson
(tomjohnson@thecinemasource.com)

*Click Here For Another Interview with Naomi Harris

America is on the brink of another British invasion. From Coldplay to 'Bend it Like Beckham' to its star Kiera Knightley, the Brits are bursting onto the US pop culture radar left and right. The secret weapon, however, may be yet to come. Naomie Harris, star of the UK crossover hit 28 Days Later, an apocalyptic zombie-style thriller, is poised to be a star. After delivering the sexiest tough girl performance this side of Alien's Sigourney Weaver in the film, the actress went on to star alongside Colin Firth and Mena Suvari in the upcoming 'Trauma' and recently appeared on a white hot cover shot of Time Out New York. Now that she has her crosshairs set on Hollywood, it may just be a matter of time before she becomes a household name. And when the drop-dead gorgeous 26 year old walks into a room full of media types, eager to answer all questions, you can't help but think that this invasion might go down without a struggle.

Carrying herself with a subtle radiance, the petit yet somehow larger than life Harris is passionate about her work, yet as gracious as they come. A student of the famed Anna Scher Theatre school, Harris made a name for herself as a child actress in TV work like Nickelodeon's 'The Tomorrow People' and the BBC's 'Simon and the Witch'. However, instead of resting on the acting methods taught to her as a child, Harris went on to attend the Bristol Old Vic Theatre once she had completed her college studies at Cambridge. 'It's completely different', Harris laughs, comparing her work then and now. 'I'm so glad I retrained, because the things I'm doing now are so much different than what I was trained to do as a child.' She refers to the fact that, as a child, her style was constant, while with her recent work, Harris has become an artistic chameleon. From her gritty Days role to her even more complex turn as Jamaican-accented Clara in the BBC production of 'White Teeth', she displays the ability to melt into any persona. Instead of sticking to safe stereotypes, Harris looks for challenges in her work. When asked if there's any role she wouldn't pursue, she thinks for a second, then answers quite strongly, 'No, not really. I mean, I could stand up here and say I'll never play a prostitute, but that's rubbish, you know, because if the character was interesting enough, if there was strong background on why she became a prostitute, etc., it would be worth doing.'

Always looking to branch out, Harris read the script for Days and instantly connected to it, despite hating the thriller genre(the only scary movie she's seen is Jaws, and that was quite enough for her). It didn't hit her how physically demanding the role would be until she was on the set, however. 'It was easily the most demanding role I've ever had' she says of Selena. 'And of course I never realized that stunts in movies do hurt, and hurt quite a lot. When you're getting thrown onto concrete, there's no padding, so I was coming home with cuts and bruises every day.' In addition to the scrapes, Harris also had to contend with a grueling schedule of night shoots for a month while wearing a flimsy, blood-soaked red dress, not to mention the rain and the rats. 'We were sleeping while everyone else in town was awake, and vice-versa', she recalls, wincing and laughing at the same time.

The gauntlet-style shoot was all worth it once she saw the finished product, however. It's clear that when she speaks about the film, Harris isn't just spinning hollow praise. She firmly believes in the themes and ideas Days represents. Moreover, she loves the warm reception American audiences have given the film. 'I'm so pleased with the response here. It's just been amazing. Because I just think it's a fantastic film, I genuinely do. I'm so proud to be a part of it. And I'm really disappointed that it didn't do so well in England, so it's been fantastic to get the rewards here.' When asked why she thinks the film has succeeded here, she fearlessly responds, 'People here just get it much more than in England. I really don't know why. You're just more tuned into it, maybe because of September 11th, maybe because of the SARS virus, I don't know. But critically, it's been received a lot better as well.' When asked what particular nerve the film touches in her, Harris goes beyond those particular world events. 'Those things are certainly relevant, but for me, what I find about the film is the whole question of what happens to man when you remove the structures that control and constrict him. Because I think we're all base individuals and we create these structures to limit our violent tendencies. And I think that when you remove those, you're left with not a particularly attractive individual at the end of the day. But it has hope in the sense that it's also about community, that to survive, we have to depend on each other, and not become isolated individuals.' Isolated is exactly what Selena is at the beginning of Days, emotionally repressed after killing her infected family. 'She doesn't want to feel, and I think that's why she's particularly harsh when she meets Jim in the beginning, because she immediately senses that there's something there between the two of them.'

The cold, reclusive Selena is a far cry from Harris herself, so it was tough to find the character for her at first. Even more challenging than finding Selena was enduring a scene where she is nearly raped by an army platoon. 'I found that really difficult to do, because I really think that's all women's worst nightmare.' Harris says, smiling. 'So to kind of go there in your head is really tough. And also, you say, oh you know, you're acting, but when you've got seven guys on you, ripping your clothes, it doesn't feel like acting. You know, the actors have to get very hyped up for that, and they were. And it hurts, you know.' Despite the obvious ordeal the process was, the actress continues to laugh, casually shrugging off the difficulty of it. 'I really didn't have to act for it, I was just reacting. It was just not a nice experience.' Her mother had a tougher time watching it than she did performing it, however. According to the actress, 'as soon as she saw where it was all going, that was it. She left the theatre.' Harris' bond with her mother is strong. Indeed, it's a bond that keeps her from pulling up her stake and moving to the US full-time, despite her love for the country. 'I live 5 minutes away from my family at home' she says, in a soft, attractively sheepish tone. 'I just don't think I could do that.' Nonetheless, Harris is currently out in Los Angeles for a month, having recently acquired an American agent. 'I'm going to be doing a lot of meetings, and screen tests' she says, without a hint of self-satisfaction. 'I don't know. Who knows'' Right now seems to be a bit of an odd transitional period for the actress, who's just getting her first taste of widespread recognition. 'I've turned down a lot of scripts since 28 Days' she says. 'A lot of scripts. It's difficult to know what to say yes to and what to say no to, but it's something new I'm having to deal with. I'm learning.'

When asked what she looks for in a script, Harris simply responds, 'Whether I believe it and whether I can identify with the characters.' Her honest, straightforward response is like a breath of fresh air compared to the publicity hungry hordes of up-and-coming starlets, aiming for projects on the advice of their agent, lawyer, manager, studio or image consultant. Harris' goals are simple. She doesn't want to be a star, she just wants to act. She wants to work in the U.S. but she wants stay as close to her family in England as possible. 'I have a sister who's four and a brother who's seven' she says, more proudly than any of any of the career highlights she's spoken of. 'I wouldn't like to be too far away from them permanently.' When asked if they've seen their big sister onscreen, she gaps, horrified. 'No! Gosh no! No, definitely not. They're too young for that. My mum walked out.' Her ability to keep all aspects of her life, career and family, in their specific place, gives the actress a down to Earth glow that can't be manufactured. As the interview ends, she thanks the handful of reporters and film crew individually before leaving and pausing outside to talk casually to the same people. A rising star with actual talent who's thoroughly unselfish to boot' Hollywood's not going to know what hit it. As long as they've got more actresses like Naomie Harris, the Brits can feel free to invade whenever they want to.