AT this particular moment Vin Diesel doesn't seem like the ideal candidate to battle against deadly noctural creatures on a far-off planet as he does in the sci-fi monster movie Pitch Black.

The American whose acting name sounds like a particularly unappealing bottle of wine is suffering from jet lag, having just flown into the UK from Australia, where the film was shot.

With his bald head, muscular figure and gravel voice, Diesel - who won't reveal his real name - announces himself as a screen presence to be reckoned with. Pitch Black has marked him out as a star-in-the-making coming after playing Private Caparzo in Saving Private Ryan, a business man in Boiler Room and lending his distinctive voice to the title character of the animated The Iron Giant.

Deep down, he says, he always felt he would be successful but it's taken him a decade in the business to make his mark as an actor. As a writer and director he's already had success with a short film Multi-Facial and a feature Strays, both of which were shown at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival.

His latest directorial project Doormen is based on his own experiences as a bouncer in New York City nightclubs. He was a bouncer for nine years, while working his way through school and trying for acting roles. "A night-time job like that offered incredible flexibility and part of the initial attraction was the power of being a bouncer. But it got to the point where I realised it was the only social life I ever had," he says.

Despite his imposing frame, he maintains that what made him a good bouncer was his diplomacy. "There were ten guys around and I could defuse the situation. That was my goal always," he adds, pointing out that about 30 per cent of the fights he got into were with fellow doormen. He contends he's a teddy bear not a tough guy - and who'd dare argue with such a big chap?

As Riddick in Pitch Black, Diesel plays a convicted murderer aboard a spacecraft that crash lands with the usual motley band on a distant planet where flesh-eating creatures come out at night.

His character's ability to see in the dark helps no end in fighting the beasties although the contact lenses the actor wore for the role were uncomfortable. Hubcaps, he calls them. "They were prototypes and had never been tested. I had a scratched eye after the first day which needed a minor operation," he recalls.

The success at the US box office of Pitch Black must have come as a relief after the problems he had over Reindeer Games, the thriller directed by veteran film-maker John Frankenheimer.

The film was released over here as Deception but don't worry if you can't remember Diesel's performance - he wasn't in it. He left the production early on after creative differences with the director. The actor wouldn't normally talk about it, but does so because Frankenheimer has already gone public with the row in a magazine article.

"When you're a young actor and new to Hollywood it's a very vulnerable place to be," he says.

He couldn't help but be thrilled when the script for Reindeer Games came his way after a meeting with a top producer amid talk of a two picture deal with the company that had just won awards with Shakespeare In Love. But he didn't think the part, as it was written on the page, was right for him.

Then Frankenheimer called him at home to try to get him to change his mind with promises that he was "going to do this, that and the other with the character". Diesel was persuaded to take the role and headed off on location to Vancouver. A week into rehearsals the director and the actor agreed to disagree.

"The next morning I called my agent and was out of there," he says. "I thought I was leaving on good terms. As a director I would never want to force anyone into my film." Although he believes that the decision to quit was "ultimately good", the stories put out about his departure hurt him - "That was the first time I felt the effect of how ruthless the industry can be. It was a big wake-up call. I take the blame, it was my fault for not sticking to my guns in the beginning. So I learnt a lesson."

Now he's confident he's making the right moves, constantly aware of the perception of him as a rising star. "You have to be aware of that, especially if you take a hands on approach you have to know where you stand."

Pitch Black (15) opens today.