Eva Green left her childhood home in Paris's Île Saint-Louis for London after she starred in The Dreamers, in 2003. In the five years since, the 28-year-old has been living out the fantasies of young women -everywhere: Onscreen she's been a Bond girl, Orlando Bloom's love interest, and a witch. What sets Green apart in the land of beautiful actresses is the detached, I'm-too-smart-for-my-own-good persona she has cultivated. Now she's taking on the role of a boarding school teacher in director Jordan Scott's forthcoming drama Cracks and also appears in Gerald McMorrow's upcoming dystopian sci-fi film Franklyn.

KALEEM AFTAB: What is Cracks about?

EVA GREEN: It's a very interesting project, quite unusual, and some of it is a bit taboo. It's a psychological drama about girls on a swim team at an English boarding school, and they're all in love with the swim teacher, Miss G, whom I play. Everything is going well-Miss G is very bohemian, glamorous, and a bit eccentric, and suddenly a new girl arrives who rocks the school's comfortable world.

KA: What are the taboo elements?

EG: Aha! Maybe I shouldn't say "taboo"-it's not quite right. It's a bit more like "discovery." It's about growing up, sexual awakening, how -innocence is lost.

KA: What's your character like?

EG: She's complicated. She's a great teacher-very modern, very cool, and she seems quite confident, but deep down she's like a little girl. It was interesting for me to show all those colors. It's quite a gift to give an actor, and it doesn't happen very often, so I was lucky.

KA: After playing a Bond girl, did you want to do something a little smaller and more independent?

EG: Yeah. Before Cracks, I did Franklyn, also an independent feature. As an actor I find it very handy to be less inside a big machine and more focused on the characters.

KA: How did Franklyn go?

EG: It's completely mad. It'll be so difficult to sell this movie. It's a sci-fi, psychological thriller about three characters who are completely in love and fucked-up and trying to find their identities. I play two characters in it. One of them is quite dark and tries several times to commit suicide-she's an art student of the Tracey Emin and Sophie Calle school. The other character is completely the opposite, kind of like Mary Poppins. It's mad, and I like that.

KA: You've been in the limelight since you appeared in The Dreamers. How has it been for you?

EG: Hmm, limelight . . . No, I'm not Sienna Miller or Angelina Jolie. I'm very lucky and happy, but I still find it very difficult to get good scripts and good roles. It's really a jungle out there.

KA: So you're not a big fan of doing publicity and getting yourself out there for everyone to see?

EG: I hardly ever go to parties. If I really have to, I'll go, but I'm not the most open person, which is sometimes not the best quality. It's okay, though. It's like playing a character, and you just get on with it.

KA: I was surprised that you chose to play a Bond girl [in Casino Royale (2006)]. I wouldn't have thought that someone who starred in The Dreamers would do a blockbuster like that.

EG: My God, me neither. I didn't want to do Casino Royale when they told me to audition. I said no. Then they sent me the script, and I thought it was actually very interesting-and I had no other work at the time. [laughs] I also liked Daniel Craig. He's not like any other Bond. So we'll see. In 10 years I might be cursed for doing it, but I'm very grateful for what it has done for me.

KA: Has being a Bond girl changed how people see you walking down the street?

EG: I dress like a dork in real life, so people really have to look to recognize me.

KA: Cracks marks the first time that you've been the main star in a film. Is that added pressure?

EG: Yeah, if it fails it would be bad. [laughs] We'll see, touch wood-I'm very proud of what I've done. I haven't seen a single moment from the film yet.

KA: There's a long fascination in cinema with English boarding schools. Do you understand the obsession?

EG: To me, boarding schools always seemed a bit sinister. It was a threat when I was a child, something to scare you with if you were naughty. Honestly, I don't understand if you have children why you'd want to put them in boarding school.

KA: That's because you're not English! Do you think you've gotten more confident as you've become older?

EG: Confident? Maybe in public. Workwise, I wish I were more confident.

KA: Do you rely a lot on human interactions when you work?

EG: It's very important but very rare these days that we can do rehearsals before starting to shoot. You usually arrive on set, meet one another, and just do the job. It's a gamble. A lot of the films now are more focused on the visuals than on the actors. I think all directors should go to drama school.