Weisz Choice

Following graduation, the actress turned to stage work on London's West End and had roles on U.K. television before easing into film, making her U.S. debut as Liv Tyler's nemesis in Bernardo Bertolucci's 1996 film Stealing Beauty. A cornucopia of roles followed, ranging from historical epics (Sunshine, Enemy at the Gates) to epic flops (the Jack Black-Ben Stiller comedy Envy) to a recent string of dramas in which she played tough-talking Americans, including a twisted Henry Higgins-type ''sculptor'' in Neil LaBute's The Shape of Things. The succession of take-charge roles is not lost on the actress, who notes that Hollywood tends to send her scripts about scientists and ''what people always call 'strong women.''' She crinkles her nose at the term. ''To me, there's nothing more boring than playing someone whose only description is that they're intelligent. It's just very dull. Plus, it always makes me wonder, what are 'weak women'?''

Weisz's next film, The Fountain, is set in 16th-century Spain, the resent day, and deep space 500 years in the future, and looks to be anything but dull. Due out sometime next year, the sci-fi epic is a meditation on ''life, death, the metaphysics of love — and addresses what we choose to do with our brief time on earth,'' explains Weisz, before pausing. ''I don't know if Darren would agree with that.'' Darren, of course, is Fountain director Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream), who also happens to be Weisz's fiancé. Introduced by mutual friends more than four years ago (''It's not a great tale, though we've been meaning to just make up a great story''), the Manhattan-based couple easily fell into a professional groove during the three-month production. ''Because this film has been six years in the making, I had never seen him direct before, so the best way to express it is I met the director, and he met the actress,'' says Weisz. ''It's not like we pretended not to know each other. I think for the first few days, though, everyone on set was like, 'Is this going to be okay?' and when it was, everybody relaxed.''

Lazily stirring the dregs of her chamomile tea, Weisz looks calm herself as she discusses the direction of her career. Maybe the actress is thinking of following her fiancé into directing, or perhaps producing? ''I'm kind of interested in [directing], but right now, I feel like with acting, I've only just started.'' As for producing, ''maybe. Not to be...'' She pauses, before breaking into a wide grin. ''I was going to say, 'Power-hungry in that way,' but maybe I am.'' Sounds like someone's got her appetite back.