Here’s my thing about Common – he shows up in movies as a complete bad ass… but in small roles. From Smokin’ Aces to Street Kings to this weekend’s Wanted, Common is reliable as the guy who is going to sell ‘I could kill you in a second’ with just a glance. In Wanted that role is The Gunsmith, the weapons master for the Fraternity, a group of assassins who carry out hits as dictated to them by Fate itself.

But he’s also incredibly nice and soft-spoken. I don’t think I was expecting a dude quite this humble when I sat down with him on camera last week at the Wanted junket. There’s this phenomenon I have noticed in Hollywood where the guys who probably could take you down – like Common – don’t feel the need to be menacing in real life. Edward Norton will give you a stare that’ll make your bowels go spastic, even though you’re fairly certainly you could take him in a fight.

Wanted opens tomorrow.