London-born star Tom Hardy’s Russian accent for his latest film was inspired by an unlikely source – Sesame Street.

The father-of-one, 37, said he watched episodes of the kids’ TV show to help him perfect his accent for Child 44, in which he plays an agent from the Russian Ministry of State Security.

Speaking at the film’s UK premiere at the Vue West End cinema in London’s Leicester Square, the Dark Knight Rises star said: “I watched Sesame Street. The Count (Von Count) speaks just like it and that’s what I based it on.

“I couldn’t get it off the ground at any point and thought that’s the best I can do.”

So here’s an exclusive look at what you’ll have in store when you go to see Child 44…

Hardy was joined by Swedish actress Noomi Rapace – whom he previously starred with in The Drop – and the book’s British author Tom Rob Smith at the premiere.

The big-screen adaptation of Tom Rob Smith’s 2008 novel of the same name, which also stars Gary Oldman and Joel Kinnaman, sees Hardy’s character Leo Demidov try to hunt down a serial child killer while being on the run, after being stripped of his title in the early 1950s.

The movie has been banned by Russia after officials watched it, citing “the distortion of historical facts and the interpretation of events”.

Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace at the Child 44 premiere
Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace (Joel Ryan/AP)

“I really like Russia so I’m a bit upset that I can’t go there and meet people. I’ve got huge respect for the Russians, their culture, art and history,” Hardy said.

“It’s a bit of a shame but I also appreciate that they’ve got the anniversary (of Russia’s victory in World War II) coming up. It’s a film at the end of the day – it’s fiction.”

Rapace, who wore a Vivienne Westwood gown, added: “It’s sad. I want as many people to see it. For me it’s a piece of art. It’s not something we are trading for the truth, it’s something we did together and we brought life to those characters.”

Author Smith said he too was “saddened” by the ban.

Tom Rob Smith at the Child 44 premiere
Author Tom Rob Smith (Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA)

“My fundamental feeling is of sadness because there are repercussions about this decision within the film distribution company,” he said.

“It’s troubling. There must be something in this movie that is powerful… I am curious as to what they are angry about. It’s sad.”

Child 44 is released in UK cinemas nationwide on April 17.