ERIC BANA - 'HOPELESS ROMANTIC' ERIC BANA

'HOPELESS ROMANTIC' ERIC BANA

'The Time Traveler's Wife' star Eric Bana has admitted he was a ''hopeless romantic'' when he was younger.

Eric Bana was a "hopeless romantic" when he was younger.

'The Time Traveler's Wife' star confessed that as well as a lifelong love of cars, he was a ladies' man in his teenage years, but not interested in "serious" girls.

He said: "I was always getting crushes on girls - to be honest I was a hopeless romantic. I never went through a pure car stage. For me, girls were never off the table. I liked girls with a sense of fun. I was never into the more serious ones."

Hollywood star Eric also says his transition to acting was an unusual one, as he originally started out as a stand up comic, touring Australia in a camper van and doing bar work to make ends meet - a way of life he suggests that if people try "Then they would know what misery is."

He added: "I came in through a side door. I didn't enter the business with stars in my eyes.

"You don't go into stand-up comedy because you want to be a movie star. I mean, you couldn't go from stand-up to acting back then.

Eric initially found success portraying psychopathic Australian serial killer Mark Read in 'Chopper' then moved into Hollywood, but insists his status hasn't gained him many showbiz friends.

He said: "Most of my friends date back to my pre-teens. When I'm not working, I have a few actors who are very close friends, but again, the things we have in common are shared experiences or shared interests.

"I have four really close friends, including Orlando Bloom, from 'Black Hawk Down', which is bizarre from just one film."

'The Time Traveler's Wife' is released from August 14 in Europe.