Abstract:
[JASON Statham] once worked as a London street trader, flogging "designer" perfume and cheap jewelry to tourists. Director [GUY RITCHIE] took notice and cast Statham as a smooth-talking swindler in his 1998 thug pic "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels," and as a sketchy boxing promoter in last year's followup, "Snatch."

"I knew someone who knew Guy, and they set up a meeting," says Statham, who has since become good pals with Ritchie. "He was intrigued about my early lifestyle on street corners."

In "Ghosts," opening Friday, Statham stars, with Ice Cube and Natasha Henstridge, as a brazen cop sent on a mission to a colonized Mars in 2176 A.D.

JASON Statham's checkered career has included stints as a model and a pro diver.

But it was street smarts that helped Statham - the star of the new movie "John Carpenter's Ghosts of Mars" - launch an acting career.

Statham once worked as a London street trader, flogging "designer" perfume and cheap jewelry to tourists. Director Guy Ritchie took notice and cast Statham as a smooth-talking swindler in his 1998 thug pic "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels," and as a sketchy boxing promoter in last year's followup, "Snatch."

"I knew someone who knew Guy, and they set up a meeting," says Statham, who has since become good pals with Ritchie. "He was intrigued about my early lifestyle on street corners."

It was a serendipitous hookup for Statham, who had been searching for a new direction after serving 10 years on the British diving squad.

The beefy 33-year-old Londoner - who is currently shooting the sci- fi martial arts flick "The One" with Jet Li, and has plans to star in a remake of the 1974 Burt Reynolds film "Mean Machine" as well as an untitled Luc Besson film - has so much work, he's considering a move to Los Angeles.

"The films I've been in recently, they'd never make these kind of films back home," he says from an L.A. hotel suite.

He's talking about "John Carpenter's Ghosts of Mars," the new big- budget sci-fi/horror flick from the director of "Escape From New York" and the "Halloween" movies.

In "Ghosts," opening Friday, Statham stars, with Ice Cube and Natasha Henstridge, as a brazen cop sent on a mission to a colonized Mars in 2176 A.D.

The knockabout Brit, who shares a home in London with his model/ actress girlfriend Kelly Brook, still hangs out with Guy Ritchie.

"He has a passion for fighting, and so do I," says Statham. "He's like a sparring partner - we go down to whatever dojo's available and strangle each other. I like to turn him a shade of purple."