Selena Gomez will star alongside Ethan Hawke in 'Getaway'.

The 20-year-old star recently stepped away from her acting career to establish herself as a singer, but after cracking the music industry, she now feels ready to try her luck at a more mature film, which will see her in charge of a killer gun.

The action thriller follows a former racing-car driver (Ethan) as he attempts to save his kidnapped wife, but as he races against the clock to find his lover, he runs into Selena.

Once she joins him on the quest to find the kidnapper, her life hangs in the balance when the dangerous man encourages the racer to kill her.

Selena has decided to take an extended break from music after her 'Stars Dance' world tour this summer in order to concentrate on her film career, which took off last year thanks to her role in 'Spring Breakers'.

Asked whether she had plans to stop singing, she said: ''Yeah, probably for a while, I wanna get more into film. I'm open to trying new things.

''I just did an action movie and a dark comedy and then a drama so I've been able to do really fun projects that are different.''

'Getaway' will be released in cinemas on August 30.