Julia Stiles has revealed her character was originally killed off in The Bourne Identity, but the scenes were cut so she could return for the sequel.

The 34-year-old actress starred opposite Matt Damon as CIA agent Nicky Parsons in the Bourne franchise, and recently admitted she’d love to reprise the role in the next instalment Matt is making with director Paul Greengrass.

But Julia has now revealed to Empire.com she almost didn’t make it past the first movie.

Julia Stiles and Matt Damon at the premiere of The Bourne Ultimatum in 2007
Julia Stiles and Matt Damon starred in the Bourne movies together (Mark J Terrill/AP)

“I was really lucky, she said. “Originally I was going to be killed in the first film. I was flipped up against a wall and my neck snapped, but they cut it together in a different way so I survived, which was lucky for me.”

The Dexter actress stars in new supernatural thriller Out Of The Dark, which is set in Colombia.

Julia revealed: “I nearly minored in Latin American Studies at college. I speak Spanish and part of the allure of going to Colombia was to be able to work in Spanish. The director would direct me in Spanish and I’d sometimes translate for the English-speaking actors.”

Out Of The Dark is out on DVD on June 22.