Hilary Swank Says New Role Is 'Meaty'

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ After her Oscar-winning performance in ``Boys Don't Cry,'' Hilary Swank thought the world was her oyster. She remembers thinking ``'I'm going to have so many amazing

Monday, January 3rd 2005, 11:24 am

By: News On 6

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ After her Oscar-winning performance in ``Boys Don't Cry,'' Hilary Swank thought the world was her oyster. She remembers thinking ``'I'm going to have so many amazing opportunities; this movie is just scratching the surface!'''

Since then, Swank has appeared in ``The Affair of the Necklace,'' ``Insomnia,'' ``The Spaces Between,'' ``The Core'' and the HBO drama ``Iron Jawed Angels.'' None were as well received as ``Boys Don't Cry.''

Now she is again earning critical raves for her role as the boxer Maggie Fitzgerald in ``Million Dollar Baby,'' directed by and co-starring Clint Eastwood.

``Not to put down any of these other movies I've done (since 'Boys Don't Cry,') but they weren't meaty like this,'' Swank told the San Francisco Chronicle in Sunday's editions. ``I feel really lucky to have found two amazing roles before I hit 30.''

Eastwood didn't see any other actresses for the role. ``I was a fan of Hilary's from 'Boys Don't Cry' and I saw her in 'Insomnia,' where she was good, but she didn't have a very deep part,'' Eastwood said.