Nick Cave - Nick Cave: 'Guy Pearce Scared My Kids'

Singer/songwriter Cave has adapted the screenplay for the Prohibition-era drama, which tells the story of a gang of bootleg booze bandits who are targeted by local authorities.

Cave and director John Hillcoat both suggested Pearce for the role of Charlie Rakes, a violent cop hunting the crooks - and the deal was sealed when the Australian actor sent the pair a terrifying picture of himself in character for the role.

Cave tells Uncut magazine, "At some point, Guy sent me a photo where he'd shaved off his eyebrows and had his hair slicked back, with this weird shaved parting, saying, 'How about I look like this?'. That whole look was very much his own creation.

"My kids are 12 and we sit and watch all sorts of s**t together. We have these 'Inappropriate Viewing Days' where we watch stuff they shouldn't be allowed to watch. And they've pretty much seen everything, and handled it pretty well. I showed them this picture of Guy as Charlie Rakes and they couldn't sleep that night. Which I thought was pretty good."