She got her schooling as a ballet dancer and now she's shaking a leg all over the silver screen.

Charlize Theron's latest film is "Aeon Flux," a science-fiction thriller set to open nationwide tomorrow. With her film "North Country" recently in theaters and still full of vim and vigor from her Academy Award-winning role in "Monster," the South African-born actress is pushing the envelope with a fantasy-adventure film.

Theron said her new movie was the most difficult film she has ever done and doesn't even compare with anything else she's worked on.

"For me it was a great challenge because, yes, I have never done this kind of thing," Theron said in a conference call.

The characters of "Aeon Flux" are based on the MTV-animated television series, created by Peter Chung, and takes place 400 years in the future. Theron plays the lead role of Aeon Flux, an underground agent at odds with a ruling totalitarian government.

Theron said she couldn't watch the original animated series because it wasn't aired in South Africa.

But she was able to view tapes of the show and was attracted to the character because of the edgy yet reasonable nature of the role.

"At the end of the day I just want to do something that still has at its core some form of reality and she (Aeon Flux) was very real to me," Theron said. "I think she was very much a woman and she was conflicted the same way I think women are."

Even though the context of the film takes place considerably far in future, Theron said the film connects to a present-day sensibility. Specifically, she said the film is politely pertinent to the situation in the United States today.

"The whole film is about questioning your government, and I think right now, in this day and age, I think the majority of America is doing that right now and so I think it is a very relevant film," Theron said.

One of the major difficulties in filming "Aeon Flux" for the 30-year-old actress was the physical toll it took on her. Theron was actually injured during filming.

"I had herniated a disk in my neck doing a back handspring," Theron said. "I had to go to the hospital for a couple of days and we had to shutdown for about six weeks or seven weeks for me to heal."

But Theron said she took on the role because she fancied the challenge of the physical aspect. "That was so much a part of the character for me that I could not imagine just having stunt people do it," Theron added.

Besides taking a gamble on an action film, Theron also took the chance of working with director Karyn Kusama. "Aeon Flux" was just the director's second time behind the camera, with only the film "Girlfight" under her belt.

"There is something I like about studios giving directors who come from a character background the way Karyn did on 'Girlfight' a chance to do these kind of films, because I find a lot of times that element of humanity is kind of missing in these stories," Theron said.

In referring to her history of collaboration with female directors in "Monster," directed by Patty Jenkins and "North Country," directed by Niki Caro, Theron said it has not been a conscious decision to work with them.

The actress said she doesn't have a preference when working with male or female directors, as long as they're exceptional at what they do. The film industry supports more male directors, Theron said, but quality women directors are changing that standard.

"It is nice to be around women like that who can inspire you, but it is not something that I am setting out to do for the rest of my life, where I'm like, 'I am just working with women,'" Theron said.

Theron said a broader variety of roles is being offered to her because of her success in previous films and she's grateful for the opportunities.

"I think 'Monster' changed my career — well, it has changed my career and will probably forever," Theron said. "It would not have been that way unless somebody had given me that opportunity."

The actress also finds joy in being able to explore different directions in her film career, which she was able to do in "Aeon Flux."

"The great thing about it for me to do something that was very foreign to me."

Ryan McCormick can be reached at mccorm87@msu.edu.