Noomi Rapace: Emotional instability is part of acting

Noomi Rapace thinks that challenging your own sanity is part of acting.

The actress has taken on several challenging roles, such as Lisbeth Salander in the 2009 Swedish version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and underdog Nadia in The Drop, which co-stars Tom Hardy and the late James Gandolfini.

There isn't much she wouldn't do for film, and she admits her mental wellbeing goes out of the window when it comes to immersing herself in a character.

"I don't care much about my sanity," she shrugged to Time Out London magazine. "There's certain things I wouldn't do. Obviously I don't have sex for real. I wouldn't do tattoos. But emotionally and psychologically, there's no place I wouldn't go. That's my job."

In The Drop, Nadia has an abusive relationship behind her, while Lisbeth in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo suffered sexual assault. It's characters with a complex background like this that draw Noomi in.

"It's like a big onion," she reasoned. "You peel off layer after layer. I know very few people who are just beautiful and successful. I'm not interested in playing 'the dream girl'.

"Nadia has scars on the inside and outside, but I love her fight for her own dignity. I know women who stay in destructive relationships. Seeing her fight to come back to life was something I wanted to go into."

Noomi and Tom team up again for Child 44, which is due out next year. The drama tells the story of a series of child murders and is set in Stalin-era Soviet Union.