Karl Lagerfeld thinks Edgar Ramirez sits on the cusp of major stardom, and with a high-profile role in March’s “Wrath of the Titans,” it’s easy to see why. The two bonded after Lagerfeld photographed the Venezuelan actor in a series of sessions. Lagerfeld later discovered and enjoyed his films. But Ramirez admits he never even intended to act. In fact, it took the success of “Amores Perros,” a film written by his friend Guillermo Arriaga, to nudge him into movies — Ramirez had passed up an opportunity to star in the film in order to focus on his studies. After holding his own alongside Matt Damon in “The Bourne Ultimatum,” generating online buzz over a rumored “Star Trek 2” role, and nabbing a Most Promising Actor César Award in France for “Carlos,” Ramirez has earned more than enough one-to-watch points to push him into leading man territory. He talks about them all.

On not doing “Amores Perros” 10 years ago
“Once I realized that this was the movie my friend had offered me the possibility to be in, I realized that it was worth it to give acting a shot. It just wasn’t a priority at the time. I didn’t foresee it. My life was supposed to go somewhere else. I was preparing to be a political journalist or a diplomat, a member of an international organization. That was pretty much the arena where I was heading to. But actually, not being in [“Amores Perros”] was the trigger for me to follow the other interests in my life — the interests for performing arts and movies. So it was a pivotal revelation for me.”

On his sci-fi leanings
“It’s very interesting to go from one type of moviemaking to another. ‘Wrath of the Titans’ was a completely different experience for me. The characters that I’ve played so far, they have inhabited a naturalistic, realistic world. So for me, it was very interesting to explore this sort of fantasy. Fantasy, mythology and special effects — a world of imagination, of what the Greek myths could have been. It’s about what can be interesting, what can be touching, and then going for it.”

On Karl
“There’s this expression in Spanish, I don’t know if it translates in English. It says that the deeper the river is, the less noise it makes. Karl’s a very warm person and he doesn’t have anything to prove, so he’s approachable, very accessible, very open, very curious, you know? [The first time he photographed me] he made me feel very welcome and comfortable. He’s a walking encyclopedia, you know? I mean, I think that for me the experience to work with him transcends fashion.”

On fashion
“I like clothes and I go and shop. But I don’t really follow what is out there. I have an appreciation for well-cut clothes and handcrafted shoes. But for me, that has more to do with style than with fashion.”

by Ned Ehrbar