Paris Hilton

05/05/2005 at 06:00 AM EDT

Clubbing? "Over it." But acting? "Amazing," says Paris Hilton of her first big film role in the horror remake House of Wax – even though she dies in the flick, and "it's really gory." But shocking moments are nothing new to the celebutante, who's faced down sex tape scandals, a public feud with her former Simple Life costar and best friend Nicole Richie and the hacking of her cell phone and text messages. Plus, the hotel heiress has a shoulder to lean on these days: boyfriend and Greek shipping heir Paris Latsis. Hilton, 24, recently chatted about her blossoming love, stripping down and branding herself.

How'd you feel about playing up your sexuality in the film?
There's a sexy character in every movie, so I played the sexy girl who has a little strip scene. I'm glad to do it.

Do you get hit on a lot?
Guys never come up to me. Everyone knows that I'm taken.

And that your boyfriend's name is Paris. What are the chances?
We actually met when he was 14 and I was 16 in Monaco at this club, and he came up to me and was like, "Hi. My name is Paris." I was like, "I am, too." I was so excited, and we started dancing all night long. I didn't see him again until his birthday in December and I fell in love.

What's the most romantic thing he's done?
He writes me love letters and gets me roses every day. He has pictures of all my billboards everywhere. I love it.

Do you ever wish you could be anonymous in public?
I do. In Japan I got a black wig, sunglasses, hat and a SARS mask, and it totally worked (even though) I couldn't breathe. My other (disguise) is, in Vegas, a big, frizzy wig and sunglasses. I walk around and look crazy all the time.

What's the biggest misconception people have about you?
That I don't work for a living. I work harder than anyone I know. People are like, "I don't know how you do it. You're a machine." I'm like, "I know." I just got back from Tokyo promoting my fragrance and my clothing line and my purse line.

Are you smarter than people give you credit for?
People can think what they want. Sometimes, I like to play (dumb) so that I can read people better. If you act that way, people don't think that you realize what they're doing and they say more than they would (normally).

How about the family business? Are you going into that at all?
I'm already doing my own hotels. I have my club Paris in Orlando and I'm going to do, like, a hotel Paris. Mine are going to be boutique cool. All designed by me. We're doing Miami and then L.A.

Plus, you're working on your album?
Yeah, it's like a Blondie thing. I remade "Heart of Glass." I modernized it. It's really cool.

So what would be your ideal career?
Everything. I'm a brand.