Strike while Irons is hot

FOR ANY young actor, an audition can be a harrowing process.

Pity, then, Max Irons, when, during an early audition for his latest role, in the fairy-tale fantasy Red Riding Hood, he was asked to seduce the lead actress, Mamma Mia star Amanda Seyfried. It’s a tough life.

“Isn’t it?” smiles Irons. “Actually, it was a bit worrying because I was only told half-an-hour beforehand that the film’s director, Catherine Hardwicke, and Amanda would even be in there. That’s pretty scary. And it was at that time when Amanda’s face was on every bus in town, so you saw her everywhere, and yes, we had to kiss in the audition, which is very intimidating.”