Austin Butler says Tom Hardy is one of the most “intense” actors he’s ever seen at work.

The ‘Elvis’ star, 32, will appear alongside the ‘Venom’ actor, 46, in upcoming drama ‘The Bikeriders’, and said Tom switched from being charming and funny to a heavyweight thespian as soon as the cameras started rolling.

Austin told fellow actor Josh Brolin, 55, in a chat for Interview magazine: “After the spectacle of ‘Elvis’ and ‘Dune,’ and these characters that were quite different from me, to be able to go to something where – there’s an intimate sensitivity to ‘The Bikeriders’.

“It’s the roaring engines and the smell of grease that we got to be around. It was nice to go to something that felt more independent and play in that space for a bit.

“But one of the things I was thinking about earlier, when you were talking about that relaxation on set, was that Tom Hardy surprised me.

“I pictured him to be this grizzly bear, always serious. And really, he’s one of the funniest people I’ve ever met.

“He’d be joking around until action is called and then go into being the most intense guy I’d ever seen.”

Josh replied: “It reminds me of the stories I heard of (Marlon) Brando, talking to the camera operator until the moment action is called.”

Austin added: “I learned a lot from Tom. It reminds me of you, where you can be in that relaxed place where you’re receptive to your environment, and then when the time comes, you can click into what the scene demands.

“That one was also great because I had a couple of weeks off from ‘Dune.’ I went back, and just started training on the motorcycles every day.”

Austin and Tim are the leads in director Jeff Nichols’ gang drama, which also stars 30-year-old Jodie Comer.

The film was inspired by Danny Lyon’s book and charts the rise and fall of a fictional 1960s Hells Angels-style motorcycle club in America’s Midwest.

Disney and 20th Century Studios were scheduled to open ‘The Bikeriders’ in cinemas on 1 December, but it has been taken off the calendar for now amid the SAG-AFTRA strike still bringing Hollywood to a standstill.