Sanaa Lathan recently co-starred opposite Denzel Washington in Carl Franklin’s crime thriller “Out of Time.” And in the romantic comedy “Brown Sugar,” for which she earned an NCAAP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture. Lathan first big break in Hollywood was when she played BLADE’S mother in the horror/thriller BLADE, and now she goes back to those roots in ALIEN VS. PREDATOR. She plays explorer, adventurer, environmental technician and field guide Alexa “Lex” Woods. I had the chance to catch up with her while in NYC to talk about the film and here is what she had to say:

How was it filling Sigourney Weaver's shoes?

Lathan: I'm not filling her shoes. I'm just doing a part that has the same monsters, but it's a completely different movie and a completely different character.

Did you go back and watch the Alien and Predator movies?

Lathan: I got the part last-minute. I auditioned, and then the next week I had to be in Prague shooting. So I didn't get to see the movies. I had seen a couple of the Alien films when I was younger, but I didn't get to see Predator until halfway through shooting. It was great to get an education while I was shooting because it made me excited to be part of this legacy.

Is Lance Henriksen as scary in person as everyone says he is?

Lathan: As a person, he is the greatest guy. He has done over 90 films and he came onto the set like it was his first movie. He was so enthusiastic and he has the greatest sense of humor. So he had us all in stitches.

Did he tell stories from his experience on Aliens?

Lathan: Not really. We all approached this movie as its own entity because it's a prequel to all the films. So it's set in present day with an homage to Lance's character of an android.

Why was it a last-minute decision for you to come onboard?

Lathan: I don't know. [Writer-director] Paul Anderson auditioned every up-and-coming actress in the world apparently, and I wasn't even up for it. Someone told me that someone involved had just seen Out of Time and that that's how I got the audition. I got the call on a Friday -- and I will never forget this -- I was feeling sick because I just got off the press tour for Out of Time and my agent called me on a Friday to tell me that I had an audition the next day. I told him I didn't want to do it and I don't want to do an audition on Saturday. He told me it was last-minute and they have a girl that they've screen-tested, but they're not sure about. I didn't even have time to read the script. Sometimes when you don't care people are attracted to that. If I had time to get all nervous about this I might have brought that with me. Literally four days (later) I was going to Prague.

Had you seen Paul Anderson's previous work?

Lathan: No I haven't. I'm just a wimp when it comes to scary movies. I'm the kind of person that will be up all night wondering what's in my apartment.

Will you have trouble watching Aliens vs. Predator?

Lathan: I saw it last week and I did. When you're on a set it can be very tedious and slow. It's just not as big as when you see it on film. The action is so intense and scary. I realized when I was watching it that it wasn't my type of movie.

How much did you work with actual actors playing aliens as opposed to CGI?

Lathan: One of the things that Paul prides himself on is that everything isn't CGI. He did a lot of scenes with me and the actual creature in the room with me. I think that makes for a scarier end product because I think the audience can tell when it's computer-generated. There were a lot of times when I was working with Tom Woodruff, who was in the Alien suit and had been for all the movies. For the Predator we had a seven-foot-four ex-basketball player in the suit.

How did working on Alien vs. Predator compare to working on Blade?

Lathan: Blade was my first movie, so I was just terrified. I didn't know what was going on. I don't compare because I barely even remember it because it was so long ago.

What attracted you to this movie?

Lathan: The thing that's great is that when Alien came out in 1979 with a woman and all these men no one would expect the woman to be the sole survivor. I think that was revolutionary. I think Paul wanted to make it his own because no one would expect a black woman to survive. People make jokes about how black people are the first ones to be killed off. (Plus), this came to me like a regular audition and I just thought it was a juicy role. So I went for it.

Which creature do you find more impressive, the Aliens or the Predator?

Lathan: Probably the Alien. I think the creators of both of those were really geniuses. No matter how long I was on the set I never got used to seeing either of them. When the Predator would walk around the corner it's just scary. The Alien is just gross, scary and they were just genius in making them because there is something in a human being that looks at them and sees it as a cockroach. You can never feel nurturing towards the cockroach.

How did you prepare for the role?

Lathan: When we were there they got me a trainer to stay in shape. I realized once I was there how hard it is to go these physical roles. Each take you are running and so you have to really be strong in order to not get injured.

How was your experience at San Diego Comic-Con?

Lathan: It was a trip. At the end of the day they told me I had a panel to do. I thought it would be a room with about a 100 people in it. They had 6,000 people. I said, 'Why didn't you prepare me for this?' On the panel it was me, Lance, Paul, Tom and two effects guys. It was so freaky. I couldn't believe that there were so many people that were so passionate about the movie.

Are you prepared for the fan frenzy?

Lathan: I don't know. My friend said to me, 'Sanaa, you have a 10,000-foot tidal wave coming at you.' That's an awful image. I don't like that. I guess we'll see what happens. I just hope that people like the movie.

Do you have any interest in playing Storm in X-Men 3?

Lathan: Is Halle not doing it?

That is what's been reported over the net.

Lathan: I loved X-Men and X-Men 2, but I would have to read the script.

Who would you rather have destroyed the earth, the Alien or the Predator?

Lathan: I wouldn't want anyone to destroy the earth.

What's coming up next?

Lathan: I just finished a play. I'm reading and trying to see what's good. I made a commitment to not just work for work's sake.