Russell Crowe has spoken of his ‘regret’ over a 2005 incident that saw him arrested for assault. 

The New Zealand-born actor found himself spending six hours in a New York jail after he threw a phone at a receptionist at the Mercer Hotel in June of that year.

He made headlines when he was taken from the luxury establishment in handcuffs because he was upset about not being able to make a long-distance call to his then-wife, Danielle Spencer.

The 61-year-old references the incident in a music video for his latest single, Save Me, with his band, The Gentlemen Barbers. 

‘Look man, at 61, I can forgive my bad days,’ he told the Daily Telegraph on Sunday. 

‘I’m not at all one of those people that say you shouldn’t have regrets, I absolutely respect regret. Regret is one of the greatest processes.’

Russell Crowe (pictured) has spoken of his ‘regret’ over a 2005 incident that saw him arrested for assault

Crowe says he has grown ‘smarter’ with age and is now a better person than he was then, having ‘fixed’ and ‘found himself’ in the years since. 

“You can’t expect to improve if you’re not honest with yourself about your actions and words,” he stated.

Crowe described how his new song acts as, “A reminder that not every night involves performing to 12,000 people—sometimes, you find yourself singing Irish folk tunes to the officer watching over you in jail.”

The 2005 incident unfolded when Crowe was trying to call his then-wife Spencer at home in their Sydney apartment and wanted a phone that worked. 

At the time, Crowe was in New York to promote his boxing film Cinderella Man, which tells the story of Depression-era heavyweight champion Jim Braddock, when the incident occurred.

He was hoping to say goodnight to his young son at 4am local time when he struggled to find an outside line.

After complaining to the front desk from his room, he went down to the hotel reception and launched his attack.

The star is said to have broken down in tears after he was handcuffed by police. 

The New Zealand-born actor spent six hours in a New York jail after throwing a phone at a reception employee at the Mercer Hotel. He was famously led from the luxury hotel in handcuffs (pictured)

The 2005 incident unfolded when Crowe was trying to call his then-wife Danielle Spencer at home in their Sydney apartment and wanted a phone that worked. Pictured together

He later said he was ‘at the bottom of a well,’ adding, ‘I can’t communicate how dark my life is right now’.

Crowe admitted at the time that he was ‘very sorry’ for the incident and confessed that he had a problem controlling his anger – but has avoided speaking about the situation since. 

The Gladiator star initially faced felony charges, but he later pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of third-degree assault. 

He was fined, but avoided jail time. 

In August 2005, Crowe settled a civil lawsuit filed by the New York hotel clerk, Nestor Estrada, that he had assaulted with a telephone that June. 

While the details of the settlement are confidential, Crowe is understood to have paid out around $100,000 to Estrada. 

Danielle, 56, and Russell, who met in 1989 on the set of the film The Crossing, married in April 2003 at the actor’s farm in Nana Glen, New South Wales.

They separated in 2012 and finalised their divorce six years later. 

During their time together, the couple welcomed two sons: Charlie, 21, and Tennyson, 19.