Natalie Portman has come off some of the best years of her career. After starring in the independent favorite “Garden State,” she followed up the same year with an acclaimed performance in Mike Nichols’ “Closer.” In 2005, she starred in the year’s highest grossing feature in “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith,” where she played Padme Amidala for the third, and last, time.

This weekend, Natalie delivers another surefire favorite in “V for Vendetta,” the movie based on the acclaimed graphic novel of the same name by David Lloyd and Alan Moore. Written and produced by the Wachowski Brothers, the movie takes place in the future where a totalitarian England has its government gripping at the freedoms of its citizens. A freedom fighter who calls himself V makes it his mission to inspire the citizens of Britain to rise and rebel against the government. He saves the life of a girl named Evey (Portman) whom he hopes will help lead in his mission to return the power to the people.

Below, Natalie talks about starring in the Warner Bros. fim.

Q: Did you read the comic when you got the script?

NATALIE: Yeah. When I was offered the part, I was given the graphic novel and that was a great resource to have because frankly, they were storyboards for the movie. It was amazing.

Q: Did you have any desire to speak with [graphic novel co-creator] Alan Moore about the project? (EDITOR’S NOTE: Alan Moore, before production began, chose not to have his name attached to the movie.)

NATALIE: Well I’m a huge fan of the graphic novel and I have the feeling that all of us made this with the greatest respect and admiration for the graphic novel. He didn’t want to be involved with the processs so you got to respect that. The great gift that he and David gave us is the graphic novel. There’s so much in there to draw from.

Q: Were you upset with any parts that were in the comic that didn’t make it into the movie?

NATALIE: Well I think it was just sub-plots and [other] stuff that were set aside so that [the movie] could have a smoother narrative. Obviously, the parts that aren’t necessarily in the script, we had luckily in the graphic novel to give us more of an imagination of the details of that world that you can’t put in the film. You just can’t have the pain of sitting in the theaters for too long.

Q: How was meeting the Wachowski Brothers and director James McTeigue at first, and what did they ask of you during initial meetings and auditions?

NATALIE: I read the Kitchen Sink scene and the scene where she finds out she has to stay in the Shadow Gallery. They made me fly to San Francisco from Israel during school. But they were so great. I know James from before; we worked together on “Episode II” on “Star Wars” so it was great seeing him again. Larry [Wachowski] was an amazing person to get to know and so smart and interesting and passionate about filmmaking. We had a great talk about the material. I tried to make them think I was sweet and cute. (Laughs)

Q: Did you have any trepidation about shaving your head?

NATALIE: No. It was something I always wanted to do. I think making a dramatic change that’s reversible is always a worthy experience. This gave me the courage to do it. Obviously for the character, it’s a very traumatic experience and forced upon her. It’s violence committed upon her. As a person, I was excited to choose that.

Q: This movie raises questions about freedom-fighting versus terrorism and when violence against the state is necessary. According to the press notes, you did a lot of research before beginning the role. What did that bring to you and what did you learn from the research?

NATALIE: It helped me with what the thought process would be like in an imprisonment situation that would eventually lead you to a place where you think that violence is an acceptable means to convey your political beliefs.

There was a book I read that we all ended up reading in the movie; “Cloud Atlas,” which was pretty formative to my ideas about violence because it has this story of the Moriori Tribe, which is this non-violent tribe in New Zealand. They thought that if you commit violence, your soul would become tainted and you would become outcasts in their society. When the Europeans came, they were violent and now the Morioris don’t exist.

That’s the problem with non-violence. If you have violent neighbors, you will cease to exist - which is almost violence onto itself. So that helped shaped my views on violence; that self-defense violence is the one that I can understand a human being being drawn to. All of these things are such questions that you could talk about a lifetime and never come to real solid conclusions.

Q: This movie is very different from “The Matrix” films in that it doesn’t load too heavy on action but still has a little of that for those who want it…

NATALIE: I think it earns its action scenes. It has a compelling story so you actually care what’s going on. It’s not gratuitous and it’s a great reward to that story because it’s very stylized with things you’ve never seen before. I think it’s a sweet taste

Q: Did working opposite Hugo Weaving the whole film with him behind a mask pose any challenges for you as an actress?

NATALIE: Well Hugo is such an amazing actor. Just by his physical and vocal expressiveness, you could tell exactly who he was. I think as an audience, you feel that. Also, there’s an amazing engagement that takes place because you’re always wondering what’s going on behind it. Is he smiling now? Is he crying? You’re always trying to get inside his mind in a way that you almost become V. So there’s this incredible engagement that’s even more exciting.

Q: You must get your fair share of sci-fi fans. How has meeting the “Star Wars” fans been and are you preparing yourself for the “Vendetta” lovers?

NATALIE: It’s been great. At Comic Con, I saw a lot of “Vendetta” fans there but not people who have seen the film yet obviously. But with “Star Wars,” it’s been a great experience. Everyone was warning me for strange experiences but it’s been really positive with people who love the movies and are excited about them. They’ve been very nice to me. I’m looking forward to talking to people who see this movie because it provokes strong reactions from someone, and different reactions, is so interesting; to see people’s different interpretations and reactions is so nice to hear.

"V for Vendetta" opens in theaters March 17th.