London, Jul 1 (IANS): Acclaimed director Martin Scorsese describes Rupert Grint as a very talented actor and says he would like the "Harry Potter" star to play a gangster in one of his movies.

"I thought he (Grint) was a great actor in the 'Harry Potter' movies. In a lot of scenes, the boy stole the show. He will always have respect for the movies that gave him such a huge break, but at his age it's important he doesn't become typecast," femalefirst.co.uk quoted Scorsese as saying.

"He has to do something really out of his comfort zone in the next few years, play a gangster, a dirty cop, a kid with learning difficulties. I would be interested in working with him. I would have no issues in casting him as a gangster, he is a very talented young man," he added.

The director, who recently worked with actor Leonardo DiCaprio in mystery-thriller "Shutter Island", says that Grint has potential to be like DiCaprio.

"When Leo was in 'Titanic' and 'Romeo And Juliet', nobody saw him becoming a bad man in movies like 'The Departed'. But he has become one of the greatest actors of all time. The very same could be true of Rupert," he said.