Winona Ryder apologises to Natalie Portman

Winona Ryder has admitted that it was difficult to verbally abuse Natalie Portman for the camera.

In ballerina-themed thriller Black Swan Ryder's character embarks upon some unhinged behaviour, forcing the 39-year-old into verbally abusing Portman for the good of the production.

However, she has revealed that such outbursts don't come naturally to her, telling Bangshowbiz: "I wrote to Natalie and got her something when I had finished filming, saying, 'I'm so sorry I had to say all those horrible things.'

"The scene where I trash my dressing room was my last scene. I remember my first boyfriend used to smash everything - at 18 everything is dramatic.

"I took an Evian bottle and tried to break it really meekly. He made fun of me... even in that dressing room scene I was like, 'Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!'"

Darren Aronofsky's film stars Portman and Mila Kunis competing for the prima ballerina role in Swan Lake, replacing Ryder's disgruntled character.