When British actor Colin Firth was 2 years old, the first James Bond movie, Dr. No, was released and moviegoers around the world became instantly enamored with the fictional spy.

About half a century on, Firth, now a multiple-award-winning actor, is making his action film debut, Kingsman: The Secret Service, paying tribute to his childhood fascination with the original superspy.

The comedy-action movie, directed by Matthew Vaughn and based on a graphic novel, was released across the Chinese mainland on March 27.

Famous for being a suave gentleman thanks to roles such as Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, Firth reveals that this is the first time he has played a superhero. The actor was recently in Beijing to promote the film.

"It's my first time in China. When my family and relatives heard that I would go to China, they all envied me," says Firth, who is also popular among Chinese movie fans for his role as King George VI in the Academy Award best picture winner, The King's Speech.

The veteran actor says his favorite Chinese actor is Jackie Chan.

"Of course I would love to cooperate with Jackie Chan," Firth says, adding that Chan impressed him by sending an autographed photo to his son.

Firth has not yet had a chance to co-star with the Chinese kung fu star, but he underwent a tough six-month training regime in order to become a real action hero.

A professional team of 10 experts, from a six-time Muay Thai world champion to a special operations official, helped train the 54-year-old in his backyard for an average of three hours every day.

"It was not a comfortable experience. The beginning was a nightmare of intimidation and a sense of inadequacy," he says, according to NBC's Today. "By the end of six months, if you persist, something is going to change ... I started to think: 'I've wasted the last 30 years writing off athleticism'."

Firth says that Vaughn was the main reason he accepted the role. The director convinced him that the role would be a career breakthrough because Firth is the "last person" moviegoers would imagine kicking a bunch of villains.

Kingsman, a modern spy tale of the recruitment and training of a potential secret agent, was released on Feb 13 in North America and has earned been received positively by critics.

xufan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 04/02/2015 page10)