After receiving rave reviews for his performance in The Black Balloon, young Australian actor Luke Ford hits the big time with the international blockbuster The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor, where he plays the son of Brendan Fraser.

While starring in The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor, Luke Ford admits to having something of a meltdown on the set. On his first big Hollywood film, the 26-year-old Australian actor suddenly felt overwhelmed by the pressure after signing up for two further Mummy films and being groomed to step into the shoes of the series' star Brendan Fraser.

"There was one day when it got a little bit too much for me, when I was doing a heavy amount of shooting for my opening sequence of the film. I was a little tired, a little emotional, plus I thought I wasn't doing as well as I should have. Brendan came in to my trailer and just sat down and said, 'You're doing a great job', and he gave me a little pat, and we had a good chat and then I went off and I shot my scene and when I came back there was a card in my trailer saying 'Stay strong, Brendan Fraser'. I've still got that card," says the actor who says he shared more of a father-son bond off the screen with Fraser than they did on-screen where their father-son characters are at odds.

"It wasn't like anything huge," says Ford. "Sometimes as an actor - because you don't really get to see your results - and if you don't know what you're doing, you can get a little lost with it. And 'cause I've always grown up with Australian films, I've never really had a problem there. I've had ten years experience there, but then coming into this whole new world with a big budget with producers and everyone watching - which is a lot different to the Australian way of working. Sometimes you find yourself being pulled toward the negative side rather than the positive side of things; thinking 'Am I really pulling this off?' 'Am I worrying people?' and all that. But before anything got to the point where it caused any problems or any insecurities, Brendan helped me nip it in the bud," says Ford whose career began eight years earlier with small roles on Water Rats and Home and Away before featuring on McLeod's Daughters for three years.

"I definitely felt like I grew up on this movie. The whole way through the film my character is the boy becoming a man, which is pretty close in real life too," Ford says.

A childhood ailment meant that Ford wasn't even able to blow off steam with a few beers either. "I will have a drink maybe once every six months. New Year's Eve or the wrap party maybe, and that's it," he says over nothing stronger than a glass of water while chatting in his Hollywood hotel suite. "I've just never been a real drinker or doing all the other stupid stuff. There might be an occasional beer and a game of pool but I had stomach surgery when I was a kid - for a reflux problem - so my stomach has always been my weakest spot. Therefore hangovers are not a good thing for me, so I really try to avoid it. I enjoy my day and I genuinely like my head clear and focused, especially now while I'm having the greatest opportunity of my life and I don't want to waste it. I'll drink when I'm 60; when I'm retired - that's when I'm going to do all my experimenting! But right now there's a real sensibility to me and I'm trying to stick with that."

Discussing the death of fellow countryman Heath Ledger, Ford says: "There is never really a positive element to a death but I think it should change the actors because there was a lot of crazy stuff going on - not so much in Australia but in America - with DUIs and going to jail for drinking and driving and drugs. It gives them a chance to realise that this can happen to anybody. I think also Heath was a real true actor and he had that choice as a human being that he didn't want to be famous and here are all these young actors who just want to be famous - but that's not the point of acting. I think that will really make people step up to the plate and really take control of their lives."

The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor is released on September 11.