'It takes sheer will!' Joseph Gordon-Levitt talks about learning to walk the highwire before release of his biopic about Philippe Petit's Twin Towers stunt

Published: 18:46 EST, 21 September 2015 | Updated: 19:30 EST, 21 September 2015

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He walked a tight rope strung between New York's Twin Towers, 1,300 feet above lower Manhattan, without a safety net in 1974.

Now Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who is playing French daredevil Philippe Petit in biopic The Walk, has revealed what it was like to learn highwire work... from the man himself.

And Sony has released a stunning new trailer for the film, which hits Imax screens on September 30, more than a week before its wide release on October 9.

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On top of the world: Sony has released a stunning new trailer for The Walk, starring Joseph Gordon-Leviitt as French daredevil Philippe Petit, who walked a tight rope strung between New York's Twin Towers in 1974

The four-minute clip shows Philippe plotting the stunt and taking his first steps at the dizzying height.

'I still can’t believe the dude pulled that off,' Joseph told Playboy in an interview published on Monday.

'Even going up 12 feet, which is about the highest we got, your brain goes, “F*** this! Something’s wrong!” ' the 34-year shared.

Taking his first steps: The 34-year-old trained with Philippe, now 66, in a warehouse in upstate New York

Don't look down: The Imax version of the terrifying stunt hits screens on September 30, more than a week before its wide release on October 9

He trained for eight days with Philippe, now 66, and his partner Kathy in an unused warehouse near their home in upstate New York.

'I had a safety line attached to me and mats under me, as well as a balancing pole, which really helps, but still, I was shaky and tight. When you first see a highwire, you’re like, "How could this ever work?"

'Eventually you loosen up, which isn’t to say it’s easy. I knew if I fell I would be OK physically. But, man, compared with Philippe being 110 floors up and 1,300 feet above lower Manhattan without a f***ing safety net?'

Still challenging: The actor revealed he was never more than 12ft off the ground and had safety lines attached to his body and a net. He said, 'When you first see a highwire, you’re like, "How could this ever work?" '

Nerving himself up: Joseph, as Philippe, stands on top of one of the Twin Towers plotting the stunt

'Getting to the moment in the movie when I take that first step off the tower and go out there - I felt completely enthralled by the sheer will of that act. It was one of the more perfect and exhilarating moments I’ve ever gotten to play as an actor.'

Philippe wrote about his daring feat in his 2002 memoir To Reach The Clouds, which was made into the 2008 Oscar-winning documentary Man On Wire.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the new movie also stars Ben Kingsley, Charlotte Le Bon, James Badge Dale, Ben Schwartz and Steve Valentine. The Walk world premieres at the New York Film Festival on Saturday.