George Clooney has revealed that he was taken to hospital with extreme stomach pains after losing almost two stone for his latest film.

Clooney both stars and directs in Netflix’s forthcoming sci-fi movie The Midnight Sky. In it, the actor portrays a scientist trying to warn astronauts returning to earth of a mysterious global catastrophe.

In preparation for the role of a post-apocalyptic survivor who is also living with cancer, the Ocean’s 11 star embarked on a diet plan that saw him lose nearly two stone, according to The Mirror.

Clooney told the publication: “I think I was trying too hard to lose the weight quickly and probably wasn’t taking care of myself.”

As a result, the Oscar-winner was taken to hospital where he resides for multiple days and was diagnosed with pancreatitis.

With the actor scheduled to fly to the Arctic to begin filming on The Midnight Sky, the unexpected hospitalisation caused delays to production.

The 59-year-old said: “It took a few weeks to get better and as a director it’s not so easy because you need the energy.”

“We were out on this glacier in Finland, which made it a lot harder work. But it certainly helped with the character,” said Clooney. “This is bigger than anything I’ve done before and it was like herding cats to get it done. But, you know, it was fun.”

In addition to losing weight for the part, the actor also revealed that he had stopped shaving.

Clooney said: “I grew a big ugly beard and my son loved it because he’d hide things in it which I wouldn’t know about until I got to work and I’d be like, ‘Oh, there’s a popsicle stuck in my beard.'

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“But my wife and daughter were really happy when it came off because it was very hard to find a face underneath all that mess.”

The Midnight Sky, which also stars Felicity Jones and David Oyelowo, will be available to stream on Netflix on 23 December.