Ricky Whittle, 43, ageing backwards as former Hollyoaks star walks the red carpet for new movie in Mexico

RICKY Whittle looked like he had barely aged a day as he stepped onto the red carpet yesterday.

The actor, 43, showed how far he has come from Hollyoaks as he rubbed shoulders with A-listers in his new film Land of Bands.

Ricky, who played Calvin on the Channel 4 soap, appears alongside Liam Hemsworth, Russell Crowe and Luke Hemsworth in the movie.

He looked very dapper for the premiere in Mexico City wearing a white shirt and blazer.

The film follows a army Special Forces team who are ambushed and their hope lies with Air Force personnel who guide them through a brutal 48-hour battle.

Ricky, who was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing in 2009, went on to make it big in LA after leaving the Cheshire-based soap in 2010.

He has starred in the US remake of BBC drama, Mistresses, action series The 100 and fantasy show American Gods.

He stars in the latter series opposite Ian McShane of Lovejoy fame.

The Oldham-born actor also has several film credits to his name, including Netflix film Nappily Ever After, as well as 2013 romcom Austenland.

Back in the Hollyoaks days, Ricky dated his co-star Carley Stenson, who played Steph Cunningham in the soap.

Since moving to the US, he has been linked to former Gossip Girl actress Jessica Szhor and Demi Moore's daughter Rumer Willis.

He splashed out £1.2 million on a lavish LA property back in 2019.

Speaking previously about his new life in America, Ricky told the : "When you’re living in LA, you really do have to raise your game – you have to be the best ‘you’ possible.

“My favourite compliment now is that people are talking about my acting, my craft – not my torso. I mean, my shirt’s been on for the last 10 episodes. For me, that’s my biggest achievement in America!

“My abs were my bread and butter in the UK – the calendars, the photoshoots, and all that came with it.

“Now it’s all about the performance. I’m not a piece of meat any more. I’m being taken seriously as an actor, and that’s all any actor wants.”