A comedian and a ‘Gentleman’

Jemaine Clement and customs agents just can’t seem to get along. The “Flight of the Conchords” star missed the junket for his new film, “Gentlemen Broncos,” because of a visa issue, and he claims it isn’t the first time.

“I always get stopped in Canada, but I did actually try to sneak in there once, so they always check it out,” he says. And for work on his latest film, his appearance got him into even more trouble. “When I came to do ‘Gentlemen Broncos,’ I had quite a thick beard. So I got searched on every single possible point,” he says before stopping to clarify, “I don’t mean bodily, I mean of the journey.”

“Gentlemen Broncos” marks Clement’s second major film role — after 2007’s indie “Eagle vs Shark” — and in it he plays Ronald Chevalier, a pompous fantasy-fiction author who rips off one of his biggest fans. Clement admits the pacing of a movie shoot is more his style than working through the hectic “Conchords” schedule — “You have to record two albums’ worth of material and write a sitcom,” he says of the demanding show.

But finding more film roles could prove difficult if Clement can’t please his harshest critic: himself. “If I hear about a cool movie coming out by a director I like, I don’t want to ruin it by being in it. I don’t want to see myself in it,” he says. “I would rather just see the movie.”