She cleans up particularly well

Following a handful of small television roles, Alexa Davalos makes her feature film debut in “The Chronicles of Riddick,” the sequel to the sci-fi thriller “Pitch Black.” Born in France, Davalos, 21, spent her childhood bouncing among Paris, New York and Los Angeles and turned to acting barely two years ago.

As the grown-up version of the wild child from the original, the fetching Davalos required special makeup to turn her into a dirty, sweaty intergalactic hard case. Getting prepared each morning wasn’t the tough part, she explains, but rather getting the grease and filth off. “That’s what took a long time,” she says between chuckles. “And that’s on my time. I was using all sorts of cleansers and soaps and scrub mitts. I eventually had to use dishwashing liquid. It was everywhere. Everywhere.”