Matt Damon: Spray tan was too much

Matt Damon can't help but feel having to "hike" up his underwear to aid the spray-tanning process for this new movie was "too much".

The actor appears alongside Michael Douglas in Behind the Candelabra, which is about Liberace's six-year romance with his younger lover Scott Thorson. Michael portrays the famous pianist-and-vocalist, while Matt is his love interest.

Matt found many aspects of the film surprising to shoot, but was most uncomfortable when it came to acquiring the golden tan he sports.

"Every Sunday night, this girl would come to my house and I would stand in my garage and I would hike my boxer briefs up into the crack of my ass and she would give me a spray tan,” he laughed, before admitting he was concerned about what his wife would make of his new look.

“We’ve been through three childbirths, we’ve been in the trenches, there are no secrets. But I really wish she didn’t see that. That’s too much.”

In many scenes Matt is seen in small swimming trunks, so the tan was an essential part of the process.

Michael was able to call on some real experiences during the shoot, as Liberace once lived near his father Kirk Douglas.

"I remember meeting him just in passing, in his convertible with the top down - his hair not moving," he laughed to Entertainment Weekly.

The film marks Michael's return to movie-making following his cancer battle. He was diagnosed with stage IV throat cancer in 2010, but has since recovered and is currently cancer-free.

Shooting the scenes was a cathartic experience for the 68-year-old star.

“It was great to get back,” he said. “It gave me a new appreciation for what I do, taking advantage of it.”