ACTOR Kirsten Dunst has made a solemn vow. Although she sings in movies, including her latest, Spider-Man 3, she swears that she will never follow the example of Russell Crowe and Toni Collette,and countless other musical wannabes by releasing her own album.
Definitely not,'' she says.
No way. It worked when Barbra Streisand was doing it, but now it's a little cheesy, I think. It works better when singers are in movies.
''
Dunst looks pale and tired as she sits in a hotel room high above Tokyo, having fronted the world's press all day to promote the third chapter of the highly successful Spider-Man franchise.
But she is all smiles as she breezes into the room with a cheery Do you mind if I smoke?'', having mixed business and pleasure with a short holiday before the madness of a world press tour.
Despite her pledge and her history of being a rare child actor to successfully translate her talents into adulthood, music looms large in Dunst's life.
She is now in negotiations to play Deborah Harry in a coming biopic, having been personally asked by the Blondie singer, and is a regular fixture at gigs in the US and was recently seen at the prestigious South By Southwest music festival.
I am a big music person, yes,'' she confirms.
I think Arcade Fire are the best band of their generation. Other than that I am a big Kate Bush fan, a Joni Mitchell fan and a Bruce Springsteen fan. Regina Spektor, I think she's great.
''
And what about that hot new band Razorlight? Dunst flashes her famously and endearingly irregular teeth in a knowing grin.
After a high-profile, long-term romance with Jake Gyllenhaal and reported liaisons with Fabrizio Moretti from the Strokes and Orlando Bloom, she has sworn off discussing her love life.
But after sweeping into the Spider-Man after-party hand in hand with the British indie band's lead singer Johnny Borrell, it's hardly a big secret he is the new man in her life.
I like that band, too,'' is all she offers.
Spider-Man 3, in which Dunst reprises her role as Spidey's long-suffering main squeeze, Mary Jane Watson, is a sure-fire hit for the 24-year-old.
The first two films have grossed more than $2 billion worldwide and are revered as examples that superhero films can be smart, funny and even poignant.
She won't admit it, but the certain smash could be just what she needs after the critical and commercial failure of her last film, Marie Antoinette.
Dunst was only 20 when the first Spider-Man movie was released, but was already an acting veteran after making her big screen debut in The Bonfire Of The Vanities (1990) and then shooting to fame as the child bloodsucker who famously snogged Brad Pitt in 1994's Interview With The Vampire.
While she has blossomed into a versatile and respected actor, it has at times not been an easy journey.
Life in the spotlight has made her wary of it for its own sake and has instilled a steel in her to do things her own way and at her own pace.
The contemporaries she admires and identifies with are actors like Christina Ricci and Spider-Man 3 co-star Bryce Dallas Howard rather than paparazzi hogs such as Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton.
I am a much more confident person in what I believe in and more opinionated,'' she says.
When I was younger I could be manipulated by other directors and wanted to prove myself to other people.
Growing up in this business is not the easiest thing - even though I always had supportive friends and family.
But at 16 you are like, 'Oh, I am famous' and when I was 11 I didn't really choose it. It just kind of happened.''
Spider-Man has been good to Dunst, financially and in opening doors to pick and choose her roles, and she is clearly fond of her co-star Tobey Maguire and director Sam Raimi.
Indeed, while the prospect of a fourth chapter is up in the air, Dunst is equally adamant she will not return without the other two.
In the meantime, she is returning to romantic comedy - waters she tested in 2005's Wimbledon, opposite Paul Bettany.
Simon Pegg, of Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz fame, plays the scribe in question and Dunst is thrilled about the prospect of acting with him.
I just worship him. He is such a phenomenal actor,'' she says.
He is not just a comedian; he is like the Sean Penn of London.
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