Russell Crowe is "extremely sensitive".

He said: "Look, I'm extremely sensitive, and that's probably where some of my negative stuff comes from. I'm a little bit intuitive, so I know from a handshake whether somebody means me good or ill."

In 2005, the 'Gladiator' actor - who has sons Charles, 10, and Tennyson, eight, with ex-wife Danielle Spencer - was charged with assault and criminal possession of a weapon for allegedly throwing a phone and cutting a hotel clerk's eye, but the 50-year-old star insists the incident was blown out of proportion.

Russell - who pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and avoided prison - explained during an interview on 'Sunday Night': "I am in a fancy hotel in New York... I was trying to get a line out to Australia, the only thing that was stopping me calling Dani and Charlie, who were sitting down to have dinner at that exact moment was this bloke who refused to make it easy for quite some time.

"His response was 'whatever' and he hung up on me, so I went down stairs and had a word with him...

"I never touched him mate, I never laid a finger on him. I didn't physically hurt him.

"He hurt himself running away from me. He slipped over and hurt his head."