HAUNTED BY THE GHOSTS
The dishy actor and part-time DJ lists sleeping in a cell on Robben Island and eating giant fish in Rwanda among his most memorable travel experiences
KUALA LUMPUR was very cool and I loved Malaysia. The people were nice and the hospitality was great.
ENGLAND IS BEAUTIFULLY GREEN from a certain altitude. I flew a two-seater plane as part of an aeronautics competition, which was nerve-racking and exciting but allowed me to see England like I’d never seen it before. It’s like a carpet of grass and greenery.
FOR JAW-DROPPING BEAUTY it’s hard to top God’s Window in Mpumalanga, South Africa. I was filming out there and it’s just an enormous structure of natural rocks that frames the view. It’s amazing.
FOR SUN AND SILLINESS I really like Miami. People go out there to get dressed up and look a bit fancy and have lots of food and drink and it’s just great for a good time.
I LOVE THE CULTURAL RICHNESS of Jamaica, where I spent time filming my directorial debut, Yardie. We shot in a place called Rose Garden, a big area of gangland conflict. They literally called a ceasefire to allow us to film there for four nights. The two Dons of the area just said, “Look, let them film,” which felt really unifying, because we got to bring two warring neighbourhoods together to be in a film and they loved it. When we left, who knows — I imagine it was business as usual — but for a moment there was unification. I SLEPT NEAR NELSON MANDELA’S CELL on Robben Island and it was haunted. When I was filming Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom I wanted to understand what it was like to be confined in a jail because Mandela spent 18 years in that prison. His actual cell is a monument but I slept in a nearby wing and my cell was tiny and there were spirits in there. I heard clanging and groaning and I was terrified because I was locked in. I managed to fall asleep but I came out very appreciative of my freedom and got a deeper understanding of what Mandela went through.
ONE OF MY FAVOURITE HOTELS is The Petit Hermitage in West Hollywood. It’s very quirky and feels like you’re walking onto a film set, because of its really old-school, Mexican vibe. It’s super cool.
I’VE BEEN GOING TO IBIZA for a very long time. I mainly go to DJ but if
I’ve got some time I’ll rent a boat and explore.
I LOVE A GOOD STEAK and they do wicked ones at a restaurant called Boa in
Los Angeles, pictured.
Another great meal I once had was this massive steamed fish in Rwanda, cooked in foil with onions and garlic, which was amazing, as was the country itself. PALM SPRINGS WAS SO MUCH BETTER than I thought it would be. I thought it was going to be boring but it was beautiful. The Dominican Republic on the other hand … I thought that was going to be wicked but it was just really boring.
I WAS BLOWN AWAY by the opulent service in Dubai. At the hotel I stayed in, they’d made me these personalised chocolates that replicated the poster of every
single film I’ve ever done.
ONE OF THE SMALLEST PLANES I’ve ever flown in was with Kate Winslet while we were filming The Mountain Between Us. We had to take a tiny plane to get to where we were heading. We were flying over the Rockies and sort of looking at all these mountains not too far beneath. BERLIN IS ONE OF MY FAVOURITE CITIES. I opened [as a DJ] for a Madonna concert there. Unfortunately I didn’t get to see many sights, but I do love the city.
I DON’T GET MUCH TIME OFF WHEN FILMING but I’ve had some good fun with my fellow actors. Shooting Thor: Ragnarok in the Gold Coast with Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth was fun. It’s a lovely part of the world and we had a good time.
SOME OF THE WORST PAIN I’ve ever encountered was on a holiday to the South of France when I was about 12. I got a heat rash and the only way they could soothe the pain was to put yoghurt all over my stomach.
LOTS OF PEOPLE DRINK TOO MUCH BOOZE ON A PLANE. I try not to. Good nutrition and the right kind of liquids always make me feel a lot better when I’m on and off a plane.
I’D LOVE TO VISIT Bahia in Brazil.