A Hollywood star is Bourne: Irish actress Amy De Bhrun hits the big time with spy role

On Tuesday she'll grace the red carpet at the Irish premiere of her first big-budget Hollywood blockbuster.

The 32-year-old actress has fast become a keen favourite with audiences worldwide, having written and performed six different one-woman shows in Dublin, London, Los Angeles and New York.

But despite her wealth of experience, she freely admits struggling with some pre-performance nerves while filming the new, much-awaited action thriller Jason Bourne, the latest instalment in the spy franchise.

She stars as a no-nonsense CIA agent operating in the shadowy world of international espionage, plying her trade alongside Matt Damon, Swedish actress Alicia Vikander and veteran Tommy Lee Jones.

Originally from Rathfarnham in south Dublin, her career has been on the rise ever since moving to London at the tender age of 19, where she started to attend drama school.

Her impressive resume includes starring with rapper and actor Andre 3000 in the Jimi Hendrix biopic, All Is By My Side.

She also played the role of Ingregird in the History Channel's epic Vikings, Rachel in the Irish comedy feature film The Stag, and most recently appeared in the Showtime USA series Penny Dreadful.

Amy has also turned her hand to starring in music videos, including Kodaline's All I Want and The Coronas' All The Others.

But stepping into the world-famous Warner Brothers studio in London, where Harry Potter was filmed, to do her stuff alongside the world's biggest names in a multi-million blockbuster, was a daunting proposition.

Recalling her first day on set, she says she was initially struck by the enormity of the production.

"It was unbelievably exciting; the sets were absolutely incredible.

"I have huge admiration for director Paul Greengrass, who I've watched from a distance for a long time.

"I forced myself to be calm and collected. It was just before Alicia had been nominated for the Oscar, and it was just before a lot of the work that shot her to superstardom had come out.

"It was hard to not let all that get in the way, but I suppose, as with anything, it's essentially a job.

"I started with the attitude that I want to go and do the very best I can. That was the approach of everybody working on the film."

She said it was important to remember all those involved in a production had the same objective - to make the best movie possible.

"It felt the same as an independent film but just on a much larger scale. But it was such an amazing experience."

She now intends to capitalise on the exposure of playing her part in such a high-profile movie - coupled with the fact her career has been propelled to new heights.

"My whole ethos is to follow the work wherever it happens to be.

"I've a few projects that I'm auditioning for at the moment. I've also written a feature film and I've got a producer attached to it.

"It's going to the Irish Film Board so hopefully we can get some funding."

Speaking to the Sunday Independent about how she landed her role in what is the fifth film in the Bourne series, she says there were a few nerve-racking weeks of waiting for an all-important call, which would confirm the part was definitely hers.

"It was a long process before I actually signed up for the movie, because they need to make sure that everything is in place, and everything fits together.

"It was a very exciting - yet very frustrating - time. It coincided with 10 years after graduating from drama school. So it was a nice moment to be able to say - okay, this is working."