BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA ¨C If Scarlett Johansson were to have one superpower, perhaps it would be the ability to master any language possible.

¡°Eventually I¡¯d like to do a French-language movie,¡± she tells The Japan Times. ¡°I¡¯ve seen French movies where Sigourney Weaver or Jane Fonda spoke all their own lines, and I was very impressed.¡±

The star of the cult film ¡°Lost in Translation¡± allows that she¡¯d also ¡°love to do something in Japanese,¡± but thinks it may be beyond her capabilities. ¡°I¡¯d have to study hard . . . though I¡¯m sure it would be worth it.¡±

The 29-year-old Johansson is currently starring in French director Luc Bresson¡¯s ¡°Lucy,¡± a sci-fi action film that sees her kicking some major butt. Lucy is a student in Taipei who is forced to become a drug mule ¡ª specifically for a new drug called CPH4. The substance is sewn into her stomach, but is then accidentally released into her system, endowing her with telepathy, super strength and various other powers.

¡°It would be horrible to be super-human, really,¡± Johansson admits. ¡°I remember (the TV series) ¡®The Bionic Woman.¡¯ Everyone thought it was so cool, and so did I. But when you move inside a character like Lucy, you put on a different mind-set. (For instance,) in one scene she tells her mother she can ¡®feel everything¡¯ but she tells her in tears, because it¡¯s so overpowering.¡±

The film trades in the myth that humans use only about 10 percent of their brain power. Lucy¡¯s reaction to the drug she¡¯s smuggling allows her to gradually tap the full 100 percent.

Made in Taipei, Paris and New York, ¡°Lucy¡± isn¡¯t a huge departure for Johansson, who last year voiced a computer operating system in ¡°Her,¡± and played an alien in ¡°Under the Skin.¡± Is she drawn to futuristic female characters?

¡°You know, when an actress is young and blonde, she can be bankable but she¡¯s seldom given much range,¡± she says. ¡°Sooner or later, she¡¯s categorized, and repetition of any category usually leads to boredom ¡ª for the audience and for the performer. I figure, why not take chances?¡±

Johansson will get the chance to do some more butt-kicking when she reprises the role of Black Widow in ¡°Avengers: Age of Ultron¡± next year.

¡°Lucy¡± is now playing in cinemas nationwide. For more information, visit .