(Cover) - EN Showbiz - Rooney Mara was terrified to ride a motorcycle in her newest film.

The 26-year-old actress plays Lisbeth Salander in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The gritty film sees Rooney's character getting pierced, raped and nude quite frequently.

Although Rooney was prepared to get down and dirty, she admits that riding a motorbike was a frightening prospect.

"The motorcycle was the thing I really didn't want to do. You know, you're going to be raped, be naked But as soon as [director David Fincher] was like, You're going to have to ride a motorcycle,' I was like, Oh, really?'" Rooney told Entertainment Weekly.

Rooney had to transform her physical appearance for the role. Her long locks were cut off, but the actress was happy to forfeit her hair.

"I didn't freak out at all [about chopping my hair off]. Because at that point, I'd already been sort of in the part, like researching it, for two months, so to me the hair was weighing me down. I wanted to get rid of it. They were going to wait longer. I was like: 'You just need to do it!'"

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo will be released in the US on December 21. (C) Cover Media