Rhys Ifans based Spider-Man villain on drug addicts

Rhys Ifans drew on his knowledge of drug addicts to portray the villain in comic book blockbuster The Amazing Spider-Man.

In the superhero prequel, the Welsh star takes on the part of Dr. Curt Connors, an amputee scientist who creates a serum using reptile DNA in a bid to gain the lizard-like ability to regrow limbs.

Ifans insists he had an unusual influence for his role, taking inspiration from the dependency crystal meth users experience.

He tells The Sun, "He is a very intelligent scientist who genuinely wants to benefit and help millions of humans - limbless humans in his case. Unfortunately, he decides to become his own lab rat and the drug he takes gives him this kind of euphoria - I guess something like crystal meth. That feeling becomes addictive to Connors and that's why he keeps returning to The Lizard.

"You know, when guys are on these drugs they feel so brilliant and they want the rest of the world to feel as good as them, even though their behaviour is ultimately destructive to themselves and everyone around them."

The actor also reveals he listened to drug-themed rock music to get into character, adding, "When we were shooting the scene when Connors sees his new hand appear for the first time through this kind of reptilian chrysalis, the director played The Velvet Underground's Heroin song sung by Lou Reed. You know the lyrics, 'It's my life, and it's my wife.'

"It's a beautiful song about addiction. So we let this song run and just let this hand appear. It was really moving."

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Rhys Ifans based Spider-Man villain on drug addicts