Crush-worthy Barnes sees many shades of Dorian Gray

He'll probably cringe at the turn of phrase, but celebrity is something Ben Barnes is still growing into.
It's not the paparazzi part of the idea that makes the crush-worthy star of Prince Caspian and the forthcoming Dorian Gray squirm - but the size reference.
``The whole Hollywood hunk thing just doesn't fit for me,'' says Barnes, whose photograph has appeared under that banner more than once.
``I'm just too skinny.''
Piffle. Sitting in a tall director's chair surrounded by TV lights and blackout curtains, Barnes may not have the barrel chest of Gerry Butler, but he is clearly built. Also, unlike many male stars, he's got altitude.
In short, Barnes is tall, dark, and gifted with a gentle face that suggests a certain brand of innocence - the perfect mixture of fresh-faced charisma and nascent self-awareness to portray Oscar Wilde's mythical literary figure Dorian Gray.
First unveiled 99 years ago in a copy of Lippincott's Monthly Magazine, Dorian Gray continues to resonate through the decades - but as Barnes notes, not that many people really know the whole story.
They just know about the painted portrait, and how it ages instead of its subject as a result of a nefarious deal with the forces of darkness.
``I'd read the book before. I think everyone reads it around the same age, 15 or 16. But I read it again and I was surprised by how much I'd missed the first time around. The themes are flagged up and presented for debate. You know, it's not a didactic novel at all,'' says Barnes, slowly picking up steam as he chugs through his thoughts.
``Dorian is really the American Psycho of Victorian literature,'' says Barnes.
``He places so much value on esthetic and looks, and yet here's this story talking about how much emphasis you should put on the soul instead of staying young because it corrupts.''
Indee, in a world where a nerve toxin like botulism is embraced as an anti- aging agent, the myth of Dorian Gray acquires extra meaning - and an added edge, especially for anyone intimate with the entertainment industry.
``Somewhat ironically, I put myself up for this role and auditioned for it, '' says Barnes. ``I would have stood in line to do it if I had to because I really wanted to play this part. I think people probably make assumptions about the kind of person you are in order to be confident enough to play a character like this - and that made me very anxious at the beginning,'' says Barnes.
``I was anxious about the kind of questions I might be asked when I got the part.''
He doesn't get into the details of his apprehensions, but one can imagine what any casting director of director might ask an actor if he's about to play a legendary Lothario who inked a deal with Satan for his handsome soul.
``My hope was to bring the journey to life. To take the audience from a state of wonder and innocence to a state of debauchery, where he's cynical and bored by the pleasures available to him.''
Barnes says there was a lot more debauchery in the original cut, but certain gory sequences and sexual details had to be excised for ratings consideration, and even though he feels the movie may have lost some of its horrific edge as a result, Barnes says it's an important movie for young people to see.
``There are parts of the movie that just don't go far enough, I think - and even my mother said that. But I read Dorian as a 15 or 16 year old, and I think it's unfair to exclude that age group. They really need to see this movie because it's very much about that time. It's about being young.''
It's also about finding one's powers of seduction, and - well - growing into them.
``That's funny you say that, because that's one thing I didn't notice until I saw the movie for the first time last night, and it was just how much of a flirt he is,'' says Barnes.
``I had no idea when I was playing it just how manipulative he was with his sex, but it's there. He's a real flirt. I mean that scene where he's trying to get around lending the painting. He'll do anything. Those scenes came across much stronger than I'd imagined.''
Barnes says his favourite scenes are often the ones that leave meaning open to interpretation, and he describes a particular moment on screen opposite his co-star Colin Firth.
``There's a moment (after he's had sex with a mother and daughter) where he flashes down at Colin and he rolls his eyes. That's my favourite scene in the movie. I was revelling in that. It was so adorable and wonderful,'' says Barnes, who was on the red carpet without Firth - and found the adulation somewhat novel.
``I'm surprised by how many people came to the screening last night, even without Colin being there,'' he says. ``I still have a hard time believing people would show up just for me.''