On meeting him, it's pretty clear that Jack Black also didn't miss many meals on the road to Hollywood stardom. Sat in a tight red T-shirt, his eyes shaded, his hair slicked back, the stout Tenacious D frontman appears to be having a very different shooting experience to Watts. "Filming's been great," he says, his air of kookiness so constant that it seems less an act than a natural quirk. "Working with Peter Jackson and Adrien Brody, Naomi Watts, and Andy Serkis in New Zealand - trust me it gets a lot tougher than this."

So what of Black's character, egotistical filmmaker Carl Denham? "He's a young guy, confident to the point of being arrogant, who's doing the American Dream thing. You know, he's going after the big..." Monkey? "Yes," Black replies, his deadpan giving way to a rare grin. "That's the very word I was looking for."

And is the School Of Rock star feeling the pressure of having to carry so massive a production? "Not really," he sighs. "As great as the cast is, I don't think any of the actors are the star of King Kong. Kong is always going to be the star of Kong. And, of course, Peter Jackson's got a big burden to shoulder. When you've just made the biggest trilogy of all time, you're going to have a tough time following yourself. But, no, I'm not experiencing the crushing weight of expectation."

And with that, Black's off to enjoy a night out in Wellington. Relaxed and wholly at ease with himself, he's clearly wearing the Kong shoot pretty lightly. Naomi Watts, it would appear, could do with a little more rest.

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