Unlike his famous screen alter-ego Ron Weasley, Rupert Grint is very much the epitome of laid-back cool.

Dressed in a rumpled T-shirt printed with Mozart’s face, Acne jeans and Converses, he grins as he shakes my hand, then ruffles his fingers through his tousled red hair.

“I do get recognised quite often – it’s pretty much every day,” he reveals. “I think my hair colour stands out. People kinda look at me anyway.”

The 21-year-old adds: “It’s quite a strange thing, it’s built up gradually. I’m not completely used to it yet, but people are always really nice so it’s never a problem.”

We’re meeting today not to talk about his Harry Potter exploits, but rather his new film Wild Target.

“It is nice not to be talking about Potter. Definitely,” he says, smiling.

That doesn’t mean he’s not willing to speak of his wizarding days, which have propelled him and co-stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson to superstardom since the blockbuster film franchise began in 2001.

While the trio are reported to be among Hollywood’s highest earners under the age of 25, any discussion of this is firmly off the table, with his publicist quickly stepping in to declare the topic off-limits.

Grint – known as Harry Potter’s trusty sidekick Ron – has recently finished filming the final scenes for the two-part finale, Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows.

“We’ve been at this one since February 2009 so it’s been a really long shoot. I wished it was quicker but then we didn’t want the last few months to end,” he says.

“It’s going to be a very different Harry Potter film. I think it’s going to be a great way to end.”

The Essex-born actor – who now lives in Hertfordshire – filmed Wild Target in London and the Isle of Man in 2008 during a ‘rare break’ after the sixth film in the series, Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince. He had also just completed British drama Cherrybomb.

He is amazed at the speed Wild Target came together, in comparison to his previous movies.

“It was about six weeks. It’s such a different world to work in,” he says.

“I learnt a lot doing both these films. Everything matters a lot more because of the lower budget.

In the action comedy caper, which also stars Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt and Martin Freeman, Grint gets to swap his magic wand for a gun, as apprentice hitman Tony. He shadows uptight assassin Victor (Nighy) after they save the life of hapless victim Rose (Blunt).

Now that’s one way of breaking out of the Weasley mould.

“The guns appealed to me quite a bit – it was refreshing, and very unlike Ron. All the action stuff – the car chase too – was really fun,” he says.

Not only does he get to fire a gun (minus real bullets), he also had to learn how to dismantle one.

“I remember really looking forward to it but they are really intimidating. I wasn’t prepared for how powerful and loud they are,” he admits.

“There’s a scene where I also had to assemble a gun blind-folded so I had to learn how the gun comes apart and put it together again.”

In his two non-Potter films, Grint has proved his desire to shake off Ron’s goody-two-shoes image, by taking off his clothes. The actor, who is currently single, bares all in a love scene in Cherrybomb, and reveals himself to Nighy in Wild Target.

“In Harry Potter it was just a kiss, really. It was suggestive more than anything. This was a lot more intimate,” he says of the Cherrybomb episode. “It was quite nerve-wracking.”

He admits he was red-faced at being naked in front of Nighy: “It’s quite embarrassing. Thankfully there weren’t many people on set – just me and Bill. He didn’t really say very much, but yes, it did feel just a bit uncomfortable for the both of us.”

Grint later had to come face-to-face with the legendary actor on the set of Harry Potter, when Nighy played Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour.

“He’s brilliant. You pick up a lot, just from working with him. He’s very calm, gentle and hilarious as well, so we had a lot of fun,” he says.

Grint, who never thought of acting as a career before Harry Potter changed his life, is open to any film role offers.

“I’d do literally anything. Anything that’s quite different with big characters would be good,” he adds.

“First, I’ll probably take some time off, catch up with friends and have some freedom. Then see what happens and take it as it comes.”