Collateral is set to become a box-office smash. NW spoke to the star of the action-packed thriller Tom Cruise (Thanks April for the link!)

You look so much younger in person. What did you think of the grey hair? Will you go back to it or avoid it all costs?
(laughs) No. When it happens, I’ll go all the way. No worries. It was cool. It was fun!

You have some pretty wild taxi trips in this movie – what’s the most memorable taxi ride you can recall in real life?
In New York City. I was dropping this girl off and for some reason (the driver) decided to race another cabbie at 4 in the morning. I said, ‘Can you get there quickly?’ And he just took off, ripping through red lights. It was fun. I gave him a good tip. (laughs)

feel like you miss out on regular relationships most people go through in life?
No, it’s actually the opposite because I engage in life. I find that in some ways the position that I’m in, I can get to know people in an expedient manner. Because, even though I’m famous, I don’t live my life behind a wall. I’ve lived life, I’ve travelled a lot. And the thing that I’ve found mostly is how unique every person that I’ve met is.

But are you able to have a normal interaction? Do people treat you as a normal person?
I have yet to meet someone who you go, ‘That’s a normal person.’ (laughs) And I don’t mean that any disparaging way, but once you get past that social veneer and the niceties, every person has a story to tell, every person has their own adventures and dramas, and everyone is incredibly unique to themselves. And so it’s the very opposite thing that I’ve found. It makes life very exciting and nice.

Why do you like the rush of extreme sports and playing controversial roles?
I love it. I like challenge. I like that feeling of, ‘Can I do it?’ I do play extreme sports and even when I was a kid I did some crazy stuff. I remember four years old, I don’t know if you’ve all heard this story, I’ve told it a few times (laughs)

Go on…
(laughs) Okay, I had this GI Joe. You could throw it and it had a little parachute that would come down. Well, I thought this was terrific so, I saw on television guys parachuting and I always wanted to parachute, so I ripped the sheets off my bed, tied rope, strapped it to my back and jumped off the roof and knocked myself out. I was four years old. I realised that as time went on I had to be a little more informed about how do stuff. A little more knowledge.

What do you want to teach your children?
The greatest concern for all parents is education and ensuring that children learn to think for themselves. You know, there’s a lot of ‘supposed to’s’ in life. You’re supposed to accept, you’re supposed to believe, but they need to think for themselves.

What did your own mother do to make you turn out so fearless?
She didn’t stop me from doing things. I remember, as a kid, I used to just leave the house, and just go for walks. And, fortunately, my mother’s very patient, a very loving woman. And quite fearless herself and wasn’t afraid of some of the crazy stuff I did. She never screamed and said, ‘Oh my God, you’re gonna kill yourself!’ She would say, ‘Look, if you’re gonna leave the house, come get me and we’ll, we’ll all go on these adventures together.’

How do you deal with maintaining a personal life with such a busy career?
I do enjoy life. It’s challenging, and life isn’t perfect and it’s never going to be perfect. It’s a balance.

How do you explain your job to your kids?
They just think it’s fun. I don’t think I ever really sat down and explained it to them. They just kind of watch and think, ‘Oh, there’s dad hanging from a wire and there’s mom doing this over here.’ I think they just see how much, how much we enjoy it but we didn’t really ever have a big family sit down and discuss it. I remember when my daughter had the realisation that not every parent is on television, or on a magazine. (laughs) That was really funny, but they get it now.

Did Jada do any singing for you on the set?
She didn’t even tell us she had a band! One night she started singing and I heard she was going on tour. I was like “What?” All these nights we had been sitting around….we never knew (laughs).

Are you dating anyone at the moment?
(laughs) No.

Are you done with love?
(laughs) Am I done with love? I will never be done with love, ever, ever. I’m the guy who loves being in relationships. I love women. I’m the guy that’s going to get married again, yes. I’ll never give up on that.