It's hard to believe that Keira Knightley is only just into her 20s. Following an incredibly successful commercial career in films such as the indie hit Bend It Like Beckham, the wildly successful Disney film, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the big screen action movie King Arthur, she more recently enjoyed a foray into more classical work with Pride and Prejudice. Her next film Domino, based on the real-life story of ford model turned bounty-hunter Domino Harvey, might be her last dance with action flicks for a while, as she confides a desire to try her hand in the theatre

Directed by Tony Scott of Top Gun fame, Knightley plays the leading lady in the film Domino an action-packed romp based on the true story of a bounty hunter called Domino Harvey. Her hair hacked short and dyed blonde, her perfect skin daubed with tattoos, a machine gun over her slender shoulder, it's clear she's enjoying herself!

Knightley's look and the movie itself is loosely based on the life of Domino Harvey, a Ford model who turned her back on the catwalk to pursue criminals across America and cash in on their capture. Like Domino, Keira is also keen to break the mould after such commercial success 'I don't think I know the craft well enough to have earned the right to call myself an actress' says Knightley. 'I'd like to do some stage work in London rather than big budget productions. I hope it will help my credentials.'

Domino is about as far removed from treading the boards in London's West End as could be, and while all the guns, fights and car chases in her latest movie might do little for her acting chops, what 20-year-old could pass up a chance to act out their own big budget fantasy with Hollywood as their playground?

'The moment I read the script, I thought, 'This is so cool',' Knightley recalls. 'It's a black, black, black comedy, really dark and nasty.

'The whole concept of the story, the whole idea of this girl who's from an extremely privileged background who completely turns her back on all of it and goes off on this wild path is an extraordinary idea in itself. Then there's the fact that a lot of it is based on reality. That's fascinating.'

Knightley met the real Domino before shooting but found director Tony Scott gave her a lot of room to interpret the character for herself.

'Originally, I kind of thought that it'd be really interesting to just play her totally; I'd do the voice and I'd do everything,' she says. 'Then I met her and heard all her stories -- which were amazing. But although this film is inspired by her, it isn't true to her story. So I sort of thought, 'Okay, well, seeing as we're not completely telling her story, it gives me a freedom to do what I want'.

Knightley was last seen as an alcoholic Vermont waitress in the psychological thriller, The Jacket before appearing in the classic film Pride and Prejudice. With the sequel to blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean, and no shortage of offers beyond that, it seems there's plenty to keep the former teen queen busy well into her 20s, until she joins the more rarefied air of the theatre.

But right at this minute there's more mindless fun to be had. She stands up, straightens her jacket and heads off to the waiting cast and crew for Domino. 'We're flipping a Winnebago,' she giggles as she waves a goodbye. 'Someone drugs us with mescaline and then we're riding in a Winnebago which flips and crashes - I think we're going to have a lot of fun with that!'