The Dastardly Jason Isaacs

Whenever we meet Jason Isaacs, we're always tempted to wonder why directors would hire him to play a bad guy - you see he's just such a nice bloke in real life. Then we watch something like The Patriot and it all becomes so clear. Obviously Isaacs himself isn't afraid of being typecast, as he's just signed on the dotted line to play two utterly villainous roles - Lucius Malfoy in The Chamber of Secrets and Captain Hook in the new live-action Peter Pan. Of his Potter role, Isaacs cheerfully admits that Malfoy is 'as odious a character as I've ever read and so this year I'll be despised by children the globe over.' So has he been on set yet? 'No. They're filming, but I don't think I'm allowed to go there until I've signed my secrecy agreement in blood.' So what about the role in Peter Pan? 'It's a very faithful adaptation of the Victorian novel directed by the Australian director P.J Hogan, who did Muriel's Wedding.' So that's why the movie's being shot in Australia? 'Yes, but also because Australia has rainforest and jungle and that's where Neverland will be. It's fantastic! They say never work with children and animals and it'll be me and a bunch of 12-year-olds for much of the time.' Jason has only one concern over taking on two roles guaranteed to scare the bejesus out of kids. 'We're having a little baby soon, and when she goes to school she's going to have to change her name I think.'