By Jamie Smith

Film actor and director George Clooney has revealed he considered suicide while recovering from a painful injury in 2005.

The star of films such as Michael Clayton and Ocean's Eleven was filming Syriana when he suffered injuries to his spine.

And he has now stated he thought about doing "something drastic" as a result of the pain while he was lying in a hospital bed recovering.

"You don't want to leave a mess, so go in the garage, go in the car, start the engine," said Clooney.

"I was in a place where I was trying to figure out how to survive."

Clooney – who is currently promoting his latest movie The Ides of March, which he has a cameo in as well as directing – added that he was unable to move in his hospital bed.

The star made his name in the television medical drama ER before moving into films with roles in pictures such as Out of Sight, The Perfect Storm, Burn After Reading and Up in the Air.