By Thomas Chau & Sean Chavel

20-year-old Scarlett Johansson ("Ghost World", "Lost in Translation") is making a leap from the grunge, indie scene to the world of dazzle and special effects in "The Island," the latest picture from director Michael Bay ("Armageddon," "The Rock"). She joins Ewan McGregor ("Star Wars" trilogy) in this action sci-fi thriller about two people who suddenly discover a shocking truth to their existence: they, along with an entire society of humans, are actually clones bred from other people. The clones have been raised to believe that their isolation is a result of a worldwide castastrophe that has left the entire human population dead. To them, only one fortress of happiness exists on the planet and that is a so-called "island." Of course, in actuality, they're being raised and fed like animals by a scientist named Merrick (Sean Bean), who uses the clones as spare body parts in case their counterparts are ever in need of them.

Scarlett spoke to press in both Los Angeles and New York City recently and below is what she had to say to myself and Sean Chavel.

Q: Scarlett, what was it about the script that got you excited?

SCARLETT: When I got the script, it was a really fantastic script. It was exciting, adventurous and fun. When you read that you’re going to slide down a drain pipe, you don’t think that’s actually ever going to happen until 7:30 in the morning, Michael Bay [says to you], “Oh, you’re just going to slide down the drain and we’re going to do it again from another angle!” So it was a lot of work.

As far as playing a character that was kind of innocent, it was delightful and fun. As an actor, mentally, you get in a state of everything being so new. Children, dogs, people, cars, feeling love – everything’s new, including physical intimacy. So it manifests itself physically. You get excited and you feel excited. Ewan and I had a real fun time with that. It was really sweet.

Q: Did you know anything about clones and the subject matter of the film before joining the picture?

SCARLETT: I’ve done cell research if that’s what you’re asking. There are a lot of wonderful possibilities such as eliminate diseases like Alzheimer’s or Polio that would be incredible. On the same note, people might detract that you’re playing with fate, or that idea of creating a master race, or choosing your child’s eye color. But the positives outweigh the negative.

Q: Michael likes to shoot a lot of action and so how was he to work on his schedule?

SCARLETT: It’s hard. It’s really hard. Some days we had were really long. In that case, I would look at Michael and say, “I can’t do it again! I can’t.” But he was really good about it and really sensitive. He knew what we were going through. He’d go, ‘Look, I know you’re tired. You just gotta stick with me. A couple more hours, I promise.’ That means a lot that someone like him is watching your back and is there to motivate you. He’ll come to your trailer to talk to you. He’s very good about that.

But I was so sore. The first day I came home from work, I was so tired I thought I was going to die. I thought I had atrophy.

Q: You have a reputation of being a hard worker...

SCARLETT: Making a movie is hard. Everybody on the set is always working, you have to go to work. I could have the flu, and you have to go to work. Time is money in the movie business. The Island was very physically exhausting. Running around all the time, for 14 hours a day. Get off work and hit the gym for two hours. After a couple of months, you get into this mode where you just do it.

Q: Do you have to change your acting game to do something like this?

SCARLETT: What do actors do? They put themselves in unrealistic situations and make those situations seem real. Hopefully we’re not trying too hard. Acting as if it were a real situation… I don’t think that changes whether you’re doing a photo shoot where you evoke a certain feeling for a photograph, or for a scene in a movie.

Q: But is it more difficult to do a movie like this?

SCARLETT: It wasn’t difficult, it was very easy. I think every film I’ve done is very different, with different characters and kinds of directors. For me, I love genre films if they do the trick. You’re removed from your life for a couple of hours and I never found one that I thought was good enough. You figure if you’re going to do an action film, or a thriller, or science fiction film, it better be the right one because you can’t do tons of them. Of course, when I heard Michael was attached, I thought it would be very interesting for me because he does it so well. He’s one of the two or three people who can do it well, and do it right.

Q: What about shooting with blue screen technology?

SCARLETT: It’s exhausting. It’s tough, especially if you’re imagining you’re trying to escape to save your own life but you can hear the grip chewing his sandwich. It’s really hard.

Q: So if you had a clone, what would you make her do?

SCARLETT: If I had a clone, I’d never do the press junkets. [Laughs] But I’m definitely going to take a nice, long much needed rest after this one. I promised myself that. The problem is that if I start to relax for a while, I get very anxious and then I have to do something. It’s hard for me to take vacations.

Q: Did you ever foresee this level of attention when you were a young actress?

SCARLETT: It’s very surprising. I never had any expectations. I only hoped and thought when I was younger that I would be a working actor forever. I don’t think you can foresee something like this, meaning the hype or success, or the fact that Michael can see me outside of a certain category – the young, ingénue that’s done more alternative films. The fact that he could see me in this was very surprising and very nice. As an actor, you see yourself in all different kinds of roles. It’s easy to see yourself playing them, but that’s not always that way, looking at it at an industry point of view.

Q: Do you read what they say about you in the tabloids?

SCARLETT: I really don’t patronize tabloid magazines so if I ever read something that’s written about me, it’s either hearsay or maybe somebody faxed me an article or something. I don’t think it does any good. I never respond to anything, true or untrue. I let it take its own course.

Q: The clones in the movie have this idea of "The Island" of being a place of bliss and ultimate personal satisfaction. With all that you've accomplished, do you feel like you're on your way to that level, and at what point will you know you've reached your own "island"?

SCARLET: I hope to constantly be searching for ultimate satisfaction until the day I die otherwise, gosh, how boring? It’s good to feel satisfied but I never want to stop looking and never want to stop being curious about things. I think you get to a point in your life and you have a family and you’re comfortable with that, but I never want to be like that. Not too comfortable anyway. Of course, I’m saying that right now as a 20-year-old girl. Ask me in 35 years. That’s my perspective on it now.

"The Island" opens in theaters July 22nd.