Alex Pettyfer
Alex Pettyfer
Alexander Richard "Alex" Pettyfer is an English actor and model. He appeared in school plays and on television before being cast as Alex Rider, the main character in the 2006 film version of Stormbreaker; Pettyfer was nominated for a Young Artist Award and an Empire Award for his role. He has been seen as a model in several advertising campaigns for Burberry. His next two starring roles were in the 2011 films I Am Number Four, a science fiction action...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth10 April 1990
CityStevenage, England
And that's what I really love, is finding a script and fantasizing and going to a different world and kind of portraying a character that is interesting. Because other lives interest us, that's why we read magazines like 'People' and try and fascinate and drool over what other people are doing.
My dad's one of my biggest heroes. I also think Paul Newman's an inspiration. I know a lot of people say that, but I love that he's a great role model and a humanitarian. I admire people who don't necessarily want to change the world, but try to make it a better environment.
I've learned by watching films that inspired me and people who inspired me like Robert Redford and Paul Newman. I love old school acting. I love subtlety, and I also love being spontaneous, and that's really what works for me.
People ask me, "Why do you love making films?" and I always say, "Because I love film." I hope that I can call myself a movie buff.
We live in a world where it's so accessible to date now, which is great. I don't judge that. We have so many ways of meeting people. I like to meet someone and have that chivalry, to take them out on a date and actually be a gentleman. I think that's becoming rarer and rarer.
The biggest thing for me is I don't want to let people down. At the same time I love things that scare me and challenge me. If your job doesn't do that and doesn't excite you there's no point in doing it.
I think your emotion changes from person to person. As you get older, a lot of people become cynical because of the experiences they have had and haven't been able to let go of, whether they've been cheated on or whether it hasn't worked out. It's so easy to turn around right now and say, "Just let it go."
I've really actually grown with my girlfriends and the people that they've introduced me to and the way that I've been welcomed in by their families. I'm a very, very lucky man.
Being an actor in L.A. is like being in prison: you go, you serve your time, you try to replicate Johnny Depp's career - and then you move to Paris.
I wish I had some interesting stories about living in L.A., but mostly I just do my work and then go home.
The thing is when you play a character it's the persona you bring across from a book to film, or book to script to film. If I play Frank Sinatra, there's gonna be things I do in a movie that Frank might not have done, but it's the personality that comes across.
I did a modeling gig for Burberry once, and it was a great experience, but no I am not a model. I want to be a model because it's a lot easier than acting.
I remember reading 'Disturbia,' one of the first scripts I ever got, and I go 'Pfft, who wants to make a movie about a guy in a house?'
I'm too scared to perform onstage. I'm not very good with big crowds.