Renner: I didn't want to hurt Weisz

Jeremy Renner has revealed that a motorbike chase was his biggest challenge on The Bourne Legacy - because Rachel Weisz was his passenger.

The 41-year-old motorbike enthusiast, who stars as new secret agent Aaron Cross in the fourth instalment of the spy series, gets to have a thrilling ride through the streets of Manila and admitted it wouldn't have been so bad, if his female co-star wasn't riding pillion.

"The biggest challenge was the motorcycle stuff because I had Rachel on the back and that made me, not hesitant, I was just very concerned. I didn't want to hurt her," he said.

"When I had Rachel on the back it was a different thing. That was the only thing I was terrified of."

A bare-chested Jeremy even dunked himself into the icy waters of the Canadian Rockies for the film's opening sequence.

"You can't prepare for freezing temperatures and I remember the water and the beard as I came out was frozen by the time I got to shore."

Jeremy, who has starred in action movies such as Avengers Assemble, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and The Hurt Locker, said he enjoys doing his own stunts and will do the gruelling preparation.

"That's the biggest part of my job actually on a movie like that," he explained.

"There's no second or third string to come in and take your place so I diligently do a lot of work. I don't train to look better, I train so I don't get injured."

The Bourne Legacy is released on August 13.