'Kick-Ass' never meant to offend, says writer

Jane Goldman insists 'Kick-Ass' was never meant to shock.

The screenwriter claims the movie – which featured Chloe Moretz as a foul-mouthed 11-year-old assassin – was designed to be humorous and entertaining, and says she was surprised by the outcry that followed the film's release.

She said: "We didn't set out to shock, we just wanted to tell a good story.

"I was a little bit amazed that the Americans were more offended by the C-word than by the fact Hit-Girl was cutting people's legs off."

Goldman has recently re-teamed with director Matthew Vaughn to work on 'X-Men: First Class' and she admits she felt pressure to do well on the movie because the original comic books have such a huge fan base.

She said: "As a comic fan, I feel a constant sense of responsibility and slight panic every time someone goes, 'Can we just make it slightly different'?"

However, she felt much more relaxed making 'Kick-Ass' because there were no major studios to answer to.

She said: "Because it was a completely independent production, it was like having no grown-ups around telling you what to do. That was particularly fun."