Djimon Honsou's Cinematic journey

Djimon Hounsou is part of a stellar cast in the exciting new fantasy adventure ERAGON, based on the best selling novel by Christopher Paolini. Eragon is the humble farm boy who became a brave young dragon rider who joins forces with the noble rebel leader Ajihad (Djimon Honsou) in a thrilling quest to defeat the tyrant King Galbatorix.

In the highly-cinematic adventure ERAGON, Honsou tells more of his noble character Ajihad in the following q&a:

Q: How do you portray Ajihad?

A: "I am the head of the rebel Varden army, they are the last people to support the sole remaining dragon rider in the land and his dragon. I have to try to save them from the persecution of the tyrannical King. It's a great mythical tale, not only for kids but for adults too and I very much enjoyed being a part of this film. I love the fact that it was written by a young man, Christopher Paolini, who has such a creative imagination."

Q: Can you describe your character?

A: "I see this guy as quite a regal presence, he is strong and powerful and has weight in the world. He is very noble and elegant, a serene, spiritual guy. Ajihad has a strong desire to protect the last true survivor of the dragon riders. The look of the film is quite beautiful. I wear a beautiful costume, which has layers and layers of elaborate gowns or robes with armor on top, and a brass plate. I wear lots of jewelry, my hair is long and I have a fantastic wig."

Q: What was the appeal of the subject matter?

A: "It had a great appeal to me because I passionately love dragons. My Chinese astrological sign is the dragon. I was born in the year of the dragon: 1964. I have always been fascinated by them and collect them in various forms, drawings and models and so forth."

Q: What is your opinion of Ed Speleers who plays Eragon?

A: "He's wonderful, it was a huge responsibility for him to carry this film when he was just starting out as an actor and I think he handled it beautifully, he is a very talented young actor."

Q: You are currently starring in BLOOD DIAMOND with Leonardo Di Caprio, can you talk about that experience?

A: "It was a wonderful experience and a challenging journey with amazing individuals: the director Edward Zwick, Leonardo Di Caprio and Jennifer Connelly were wonderful to work with on a very powerful human story. I was blessed to be a part of it."

Q: You moved from Africa to France when you were a teenager? How did you survive?

A: "I grew up poor in Africa and had two brothers who found their way to France and they are the ones who took care of me there when I arrived. I moved to Lyon in France then to Paris, where I started modeling, accidentally as a way of getting into the film world. I got into the fashion world and came to America, because I was working for the designer Thierry Mugler. When I came to America, I discovered that LA was the movie center of the world so I came here and I thought I would see whether there was a chance for me of getting involved with acting and movies because that was my passion. So I started working and here I am."

Q: What impact did the Oscar nomination for your wonderful performance in the movie, IN AMERICA, have on your career?

A: "It did truly change everything and affected the development and outcome of my career. I had to be smart about it and know how to manage myself, because it is easy to take bad roles and make poor choices following an Oscar nomination. So it is important to choose wisely and be careful. It would be possible to ruin your career by acting impulsively and taking the wrong films. I decided to stand back diplomatically and wait for the right roles to come. That is what I did and it worked well so I am happy I made that decision."

Djimon Hounsou's own story is extraordinary. Born in Benin, Africa, he moved to France when he was just 13 and struggled to survive. After attending school in Lyon, he moved to Paris and was discovered by renowned fashion designer Thierry Mugler. With his striking looks and athletic physique, he became a highly successful model, then settled in Los Angeles to pursue his acting dream. He made his movie debut in WITHOUT YOU I'M NOTHING (1990). The actor received widespread critical acclaim for his role in Steven Speilberg's AMISTAD and has appeared in many other films including GLADIATOR, UNLAWFUL ENTRY, STARGATE, THE FOUR FEATHERS, LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER: THE CRADLE OF LIFE, CONSTANTINE and BEAUTY SHOP. Hounsou, 42, was nominated for an Oscar® for his moving performance as Mateo in the film IN AMERICA.

Apart from ERAGON, his other new film is BLOOD DIAMOND, with Leonardo Di Caprio and Jennifer Connelly, a drama about corruption and intrigue in Africa, set against the backdrop of Sierra Leone's civil war. Hounsou plays a courageous fisherman.

ERAGON opens in cinemas January 6 from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.