Karen Gillan has told of her desire to have children – but said holding down a relationship is difficult because of her career.
The red-headed Avengers: Infinity War star said she would love to have “ginger children running around”.
The 30-year-old, who first achieved fame as Doctor Who’s assistant Amy Pond, is now an established Hollywood actress and divides her time between New York and Los Angeles.
Miss Gillan, from Inverness, said she hoped her children inherited her love of horror movies.
Asked if she wanted to have children in an interview on fellow actor Michael Rosenbaum’s podcast, she said: “Of course, I need some little ginger children running around.
“I definitely want them, it’s going to be hilarious.
“I think I would be a good mum. I feel like I would definitely be good at playing with the kids, like being one of them.
“I think I would start them off watching The Exorcist.”
However, Miss Gillan said her blossoming career and its hectic schedule made it hard to make a relationship work.
She said: “It’s really difficult, the long distance thing is really difficult.
“You are just not present in each other’s lives for so much of the time.
“I’ve never really had a formula for it but I think maybe a two week rule is quite healthy to remember what each other smells like and looks like.
“I think there’s more of a reason to break up when you don’t see each other but it’s always horrible.”
She added: “I think making each other laugh is the most important thing in a relationship.
“If you are really going to stay together forever, and that is my view on marriage because of my parents, I would say that love probably comes and goes and attraction certainly fades so you just need to make each other laugh at the end of the day.”
Miss Gillan has previously dated Stanley Weber, her co-star in 2013 Brit flick Not Another Happy Ending, and photographer Patrick Green.
Determined to succeed, she had an agent by the age of 15 and was auditioning for professional roles.